Hull KR coach makes bold Mikey Lewis prediction as Robins aim to end trophy drought

Willie Peters insists he is confident Mikey Lewis can block out the noise and guide Hull KR to a first trophy in 39 years as the half-back’s stock gets set to rise this week.

Lewis appears all-but certain to be named on the three-man shortlist for this year’s Super League Man of Steel award, following a stellar season in which he has helped steer Rovers to their highest league finish since 1985.

However, the pressure rises again this week for the half-back and the Robins. They are bidding to reach a maiden Super League Grand Final with victory against Warrington Wolves, and all eyes will be on Lewis as the club’s key man.

But Peters has promised there is no danger of Lewis being dazzled by the hype and the pressure surrounding him – and that he will continue to perform as he has done all season long this weekend.

“It’s what makes the best players the best players – how they cope with the pressure, with the individual awards and with people telling them how good they are,” Peters said.

“If you listen to people outside and don’t do your work, that’s where people can get ahead of themselves, and I haven’t seen anything from Mikey that suggests that.

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“I just see a player who loves to prepare to play a game on Friday night, who is passionate about his club and his team-mates, and if he shows that on Friday then that’s all he can do.”

Peters has also called on the whole of his spine to step up against the Wolves on Friday, after heroic displays from Warrington’s George Williams and Leigh hooker Edwin Ipape went a long way to deciding last weekend’s eliminator ties.

“For most of the season, if you’re switched on as a pack you can usually dominate that middle third of the field and in normal, week to week games that will get you across the line.

“But there’s no doubt that in the big games, it’s your spine players, your key players, who step up, as we’ve seen with George and Ipape. So we’re certainly looking at Mikey and Tyrone (May) and Niall (Evalds) and guys like that to step up. It’s going to be the key players in the spine who will determine the game.”

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