Hull KR boss Willie Peters reacts to George Williams' Challenge Cup fitness declaration
Willie Peters says Hull KR were never under any illusions about George Williams' availability, insisting they always expected the England half-back to lead Warrington Wolves out at Wembley.
Williams has declared himself fit for Saturday's Challenge Cup final in a major boost for Sam Burgess' side.
The Wolves are already without Matty Ashton and Danny Walker, while fellow England international Toby King is rated as doubtful.
But Williams' participation was not in question as far as Peters was concerned.
"He was always going to play," said the Rovers boss.
"Once we knew we were playing Warrington, we always thought George would play. It's never been: 'Is he going to play? Is he not going to play?'
"It's been easy in terms of us preparing for George. Stopping George and what Warrington have got is obviously different – but he was always going to play in our eyes.
"I know there's been talk and theatre around injuries and whether those players are going to play but we're expecting the best version of Warrington.
"When you've got George Williams, (Matt) Dufty and (Marc) Sneyd controlling things, they're three very key players to have in your spine and are all guaranteed to play this week.
"But we've got some handy players that they've got to stop."
Williams has returned slightly ahead of schedule after undergoing ankle surgery in mid-April.
Peters will not single the 30-year-old out for special attention in his first outing in eight weeks.
"With halves, you're always going to get traffic thrown at you," added Peters. "Sneyd who is on the other side has had issues with his eye – and they'll be throwing traffic at our halves as well.
"It's not just because George hasn't played; when you're a half, you're going to get traffic."
Peters, who will give veteran hooker Michael McIlorum every chance to prove his fitness for the Wembley showpiece, has been forced into a backline reshuffle due to the unavailability of Arthur Mourgue.
Jack Broadbent is set to replace the cup-tied Frenchman at full-back, meaning a return to the centres for James Batchelor in a repeat of the semi-final win over Catalans Dragons.
After seeing Batchelor score two tries as an emergency centre to help fire Rovers to Wembley, Peters has no qualms about playing the hardworking forward out of position on the biggest stage of all.
"He does the job all the time for us so I can't see why he can't do the job," said Peters. "Wherever you put Batch he's going to give all-out effort and compete hard. That's all we want from our players. He'll do that again this week."
Saturday's final takes the Robins back to the scene of their heartbreaking golden-point defeat to Leigh Leopards in 2023.
But Peters believes the class of 2025 are better equipped to handle the big occasion.
"You'd like to think so," he said. "Sam will probably be saying the same thing.
"We like to think we've learnt a lot from last year (the Grand Final defeat to Wigan Warriors) and the year before.
"And we've brought in a couple of key players who can help us get to that next level."