Hull KR 6 Wigan Warriors 38: Rovers have mental hurdles to overcome after latest semi-final disappointment

The Robins are unrecognisable from the team that limped to Super League's wooden spoon in 2020 but they are in danger of becoming the nearly men.

Rovers have reached five semi-finals in three years, yet last season's Wembley appearance is all they have to show for their progress.

KR spurned that golden opportunity against Leigh Leopards and may not get a better chance to end their long wait for silverware if they continue to run into teams like Wigan Warriors in big games.

The Robins got the better of the Warriors in last year's semi-finals but there was no red card on this occasion and no repeat of that dramatic win.

The Wigan fans were singing about Wembley before half-time after seeing their side run in five tries without reply.

Rovers beat the defending champions in Super League only three weeks ago but this clash in Doncaster resembled the mauling they suffered at the DW Stadium in the play-offs at the end of last season.

Throw in KR's inability to win outside Yorkshire under Willie Peters and there are mental hurdles to overcome before the play-offs arrive.

The first challenge is to recover from another chastening semi-final defeat and consolidate their top-six spot.

In a repeat of last year's Super League semi, Rovers gave themselves far too much to do.

The clinical Warriors raced into a 10-0 lead despite comprehensively losing the territory battle in the early stages.

Wigan took the first chance that came their way just four minutes in through Jake Wardle.

Tom Opacic produced a try-saving tackle to deny Bevan French but the Warriors shifted the ball out to the left where Wardle outfoxed Peta Hiku to touch down.

It represented an inauspicious start for a right edge that was cut to ribbons by Warrington Wolves in KR's previous game.

Roared on by a vocal following behind the posts, Rovers lifted the intensity to limit Wigan's metres in a positive response.

The Robins failed to turn territory into points and were hit with a sucker punch in the 15th minute.

French lofted a kick to the corner that was caught and finished in one motion by Abbas Miski.

Harry Smith added his first goal of the afternoon from the touchline to give the Warriors a lead that did not reflect the opening exchanges.

From there, it unravelled for Rovers in a flashback to last year's play-off game.

Peters' men were not helped by an injury to hardworking forward Dean Hadley but they simply collapsed before half-time amid a catalogue of errors at both ends of the pitch.

Junior Nsemba crashed over from Smith's pass after Niall Evalds dropped the half-back's high kick – and worse was to come for the Robins.

Wigan scored two tries in as many minutes to settle the outcome by the interval.

Liam Marshall put fellow winger Miski over to punish a Joe Burgess error before laying on another for Smith with a neat kick.

It was sweet relief for Smith after missing his third conversion moments earlier but his wayward goalkicking mattered little.

Adam Keighran took over the tee and made no mistake to push Wigan's lead out to 24-0.

The centre added a penalty after the restart when Rovers were penalised for a ball steal before Peters' men belatedly got on the board.

Chances were at a premium for the Robins in the opening 40 minutes – Ryan Hall unable to finish the best of them after being crowded out in the corner – but they took the first one that came their way in the second half.

The Warriors failed to deal with Tyrone May's cross-field kick and Burgess took advantage courtesy of Mikey Lewis' classy pass.

But that was as good as it got for Rovers after Hall allowed the restart to bounce into touch.

In the next set, one-time KR target Tyler Dupree crashed over from close range.

Both sides lost players to the sin bin following an altercation between Opacic and Keighran but that did nothing to alter the pattern of the game.

Wardle scored his second after Miski's kick bounced favourably for debutant Sam Walters and mercifully that was the final act of a forgettable trip to Doncaster for the Robins.

Hull KR: Evalds, Burgess, Hiku, Opacic, Hall, May, Lewis, Sue, Litten, Whitbread, Hadley, Batchelor, Minchella. Substitutes: King, Parcell, Luckley, Tanginoa.

Tries: Burgess (50)

Goals: Lewis 1/1

Sin bin: Opacic (63)

Wigan Warriors: Field, Miski, Keighran, Wardle, Marshall, French, Smith, Havard, O'Neill, Thompson, Nsemba, Farrell, Ellis. Substitutes: Mago, Leeming, Dupree, Walters.

Tries: Wardle (4, 65), Miski (15, 34), Nsemba (28), Smith (36), Dupree (53)

Goals: Smith 2/5, Keighran 3/3

Sin bin: Keighran (63)

Referee: Chris Kendall.