James Batchelor talks Luton Town, Coldplay, Wigan Warriors and title ambitions.
The next time Hull KR star James Batchelor will be at Craven Park he’ll be standing amongst the fans. Rovers supporters needn’t worry: he isn’t injured and he isn’t banned.
But the combative second-row does have tickets to see Coldplay in action. The world-famous rock band are playing two historic sold-out gigs at Rovers’ home next Monday [18th] and Tuesday [19th].
Batchelor, who helped the Super League leaders sweep past Castleford 36-6 on Saturday, admitted: “I’m excited. I think everyone in Britain knows their music. A couple of years ago they came, I think they were at Wembley, and some of our mates were talking about going.
“My missus said she wasn’t really that bothered so we didn’t get tickets, but she then saw the show they put on with all the fireworks and lights and everything, and she wished she’d gone. So when this came around we weren’t missing it. We were told we could get two tickets each through the club – but obviously we had to pay the same price to everyone else, so there was no discount or anything!”
Whereas Red, Red Robin and Erasure’s A Little Respect normally belt out at Craven Park, it’ll be a bit different next week. But what’s Batchelor’s favourite Coldplay track?
He replied: “I think my dad would want me to say Yellow . He’s a Luton fan and I think they played that at Wembley when they got promoted to the Premier League. So he likes that one and he’s pretty jealous he’s not got tickets so I think he’d be off me if I didn’t say that.”
For all there is a real buzz around east Hull ahead of Coldplay’s arrival – the two concerts there plus ten at Wembley are the only European shows in the band’s entire world tour – the key date in KR’s diary is Friday’s top-of-the-table showdown at Warriors. Joe Burgess’ hat-trick against Castleford saw Willie Peters’ side deliver an 18th league win of the campaign and open up a four-point gap on Wigan.
But their fierce rivals will be looking to peg them back in a hugely-anticipated clash. Rovers, of course, have already won the Challenge Cup and now have one hand on a maiden League Leaders’ Shield.
However, Matt Peet’s side have won their last four meetings with KR, including last season’s Grand Final before inflicting one of only three Super League defeats this term with April’s 28-12 success at Craven Park. They have also prospered in seven of their last 10 match-ups, a sequence that includes last year’s Challenge Cup semi-final.
Rovers know, in all likelihood, they will have to remedy that situation if they are to go on and win the title at Old Trafford in October and secure a first championship in 40 years. Batchelor, 27, admitted: “We’ve got the better of Wigan at times over the last few years but they’ve probably got the better of us in the bigger games.
“That’s definitely something we want to put right. We always want that extra bit more and this week’s no different. If we’re going to go there and win we must be better than we were against Cas – and better than we have been before.
“It’s a big game and we’re looking forward to it. We’ll take a lot of supporters over there and it’s going to be a great atmosphere.
“They have a big crowd at home, they make themselves heard and we always do that away. It’ll be a tough game but I’m really looking forward to it.”
How much confidence would beating Wigan on their own patch give them ahead of a potential Grand Final re-match in two months’ time? Batchelor, who is in the mix for England’s Ashes squad at the end of the year, insisted: “At this point of the year that’s what you’d call the long-term goal.
“We’re still short-term. Week to week, we want to win every game.If we win every game then we finish the season with the League Leaders’ Shield.
“And that’s the next one on offer. We’ll worry about that before we worry about the one after: the Grand Final.
“But it’s obviously a big game: it’s first v second and it’d go a long way to help us go and achieve that first goal, which is the League Leaders.”
Batchelor played centre against Castleford with Jack Broadbent impressing having switched to full-back, Arthur Mourgue shifting to scrum-half with Tyrone May starting a two-game ban.
He could, then, be up against England star Jake Wardle on Friday.
Batchelor said: “It depends what decision’s made. Obviously, we’ve got Rowan [Milnes] in on loan. He’s available next week so whether he comes in and we move around again or whether we stay where we were, I don’t know. We’ll work that out this week.”