Hull KR suffer double injury blow ahead of Wakefield Trinity clash as duo set for return

Hull KR have lost both James Batchelor and Lee Kershaw to injury ahead of Friday night’s clash with Wakefield, but both Rhyse Martin and Joe Burgess could return against Trinity.

The Robins now sit four competition points clear at the top of the Super League ladder, and could move six points clear for at least 24 hours if they secure another win on home soil on Friday evening.

Ahead of Willie Peters’ pre-match press conference on Tuesday afternoon, the Robins had confirmed the news that Danny Richardson had joined Salford Red Devils on a two-week loan deal.

And it had also been confirmed that winger Kershaw had suffered an Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, so he will be out for around nine months.

But there was plenty of other news delivered by Peters, with his squad set for a handful of incomings and outgoings for the clash with Wakefield.

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‘The timeframe is a bit grey at the moment, it could be two weeks but it could be up to six’

The surprise news came in the shape of the injury to Batchelor, which as yet has an unclear prognosis beyond this week.

Peters explained: “Unfortunately Batch won’t play this week. He hurt his throat last week and he’s going to go to a specialist tomorrow to see how long he’s going to be out for.

“The timeframe is a bit grey at the moment, it could be two weeks but it could be up to six.

“I’m thinking it’s going to be less than six, but we need to make sure and get the experts to tell us what it is.

“Once he’s seen the specialist, I’ll be able to give some more exact details. He just got a knock to the throat which has done some damage.

“It’s unfortunate for Batch and for us because he adds so much to this team.”

As one back-rower drops out, it’s expected that Papua New Guinea international Martin will return to the 17. The ex-Leeds Rhinos man – who joined KR ahead of this season – has been sidelined since February with a quad injury which required surgery.

Peters detailed: “He’ll be named in the squad, and we’ll wait and see later in the week where he’s at.

“When he’s back, if he’s right to play, we need to see what his minutes look like.

“He’s had a long process in terms of getting himself right, and now he’s ready to play, whether that be this week or next week.

“Whenever that is, we’ll look at whether he starts or comes off the interchange (bench).

“He’s joined in training, so he’s been ticking boxes along the way. He’s been doing everything he needs to from a rehab point of view to make sure he could join the squad this week.”

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Joe Burgess injury latest delivered by Hull KR boss Willie Peters

In similar fashion, as the Robins have lost one winger in the shape of Kershaw, another is set to return in Burgess.

Kershaw hasn’t formed part of Peters’ 17 previously, so it’s young flier Noah Booth that Burgess will take the place of as and when he’s fit.

On Burgess, who hasn’t featured since KR’s Challenge Cup final victory at Wembley on June 7, Peters said: “We’ll finalise it (the squad for Wakefield) later on in the week and we’ll know more on Joe Burgess by then.

“He’s in contention. We just need to work it out and he needs to prove that he’s going to be able to play.

“Other than that, everyone’s pulled up pretty well after last week.

“Hopefully both (Micky McIlorum and Jared Waerea-Hargreaves) will be back within the next couple of weeks. Possibly even for next week.”

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