Chester warns Rovers about Hull’s pack strength

Hull KR coach Chris Chester knows that his team will have to cope with Hull FC‘s forward pack if they are to win Thursday’s East Yorkshire derby at the KC Stadium.

A crowd of over 20,000 is expected for the eagerly anticipated clash, and Chester believes that physicality and aggression will once again be key to victory.

“I’m expecting a physical performance from Hull this week,” Chester told his club’s official website.

“They’ve got a fantastic pack, Mickey Paea is going well for them, as is Liam Watts and they’ve got Feka Paleaaesina too. The list goes on and they have Danny Houghton playing off the back of that.

“Having said that, St Helens had a large pack out last weekend and we dominated that game. I want the same again from us in terms of effort and intensity.

“We’ve maybe got a smaller pack, but we’ve got a very gritty and resilient pack and we’re looking forward to this game on Thursday night. There’s a lot to play for and we feel like we owe them one after the performance there last year.

“I’m confident in this group of players that that won’t happen again. We’re a totally different group this year, a close-knit group, and hopefully the heart and the togetherness of this group will go a long way to getting us a result this week.”