Pangai Jr has penned a short-term deal with the Red and Whites
Tevita Pangai Jr in action for Catalans Dragons last season
Hull KR fans will have to wait to see Tevita Pangai Jr in a red and white shirt.
Pangai Jr joined up with the Robins this week after penning a deal until the end of the Super League season.
The prop agreed to join Warrington Wolves last year after spending last season with Catalans Dragons. However, he pulled out of the move to remain in France and try his hand in rugby union.
He never managed to secure a professional contract in the 15-man code and because of that, he has arrived at Craven Park short of fitness.
As such, he will spend some time training with Rovers and building himself back up to where Willie Peters needs to be in regards to fitness before he makes it onto the field.
“He needs to get fit,” Peters said on Pangai Jr. “He needs to make sure he’s in peak condition to be able to do what he needs to do on the field.
“With someone like Tevita, it’s repeat efforts and being able to carry as hard you can and come out of the line and have aggression and intent with his defence, which he does, and have repeat efforts of that. When you’re fit you can do that. He hasn’t been part of a professional set up for a long time but he wants to join our club.
“He sees our club as a place where he can play his best rugby league and reach his potential. We’re looking forward. He knows he needs to earn his teammates’ trust and the only way to do that is by working hard and training hard and when he gets his opportunity, by being a great teammate on the field.
“He hasn’t been in a professional environment so we need to work on that over the next couple of weeks.”
Rovers aren’t exactly short of middle options at present, with Sauaso Sue and Tom Amone building a strong starting partnership with Sam Luckley and Jai Whitbread stepping off the bench.
Asked where Pangai Jr could play for KR, though, Peters added: “He can play two positions, he can play in the back row as well.
“We see Tevita as a player that if he can reach his potential, he’s a player that’s played at the highest level in the NRL, he’s played Origin, he can play a couple of positions.
“We see him as a player that if he can reach his potential and buy into what we’re doing, he could be valuable at the back end of the year for us.”
With Pangai Jr arriving at the club, it seems likely that a player might have to leave in order to balance the books, the Rovers boss has confirmed.
“That’s possibly the case and we’ll share information when we can,” Peters added. “There was some decisions that were made by a player previously.
“I don’t want to share that now, but it would be likely that someone may leave.”