16 June 2023 , 17:15
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HULL KR captain Shaun Kenny-Dowall won’t allow himself time to think about retirement as he’s too intent on getting the Robins to Wembley.
The popular ex-Kiwi international announced three weeks ago he will call it a day at the end of the season. It would be easy for the hard-running centre, 35, to now be ticking off every game, savouring every moment. But with KR - who host red-hot Salford in today’s crunch Challenge Cup quarter-final - having dropped into Super League’s lower half, Kenny-Dowall can’t afford to.
He admitted: “I’ve not even thought about it. With the predicament we’re in I guess the full focus just goes into the games we’ve got coming up and trying to get our season back on track. That’s the priority. Everything else is on the back-burner. I’ve made my decision and was glad to get it out of the way early for that reason: so I could give my full attention to the back end of the season. We’ve a massive opportunity against Salford and that’s all I’m thinking about.”
Kenny-Dowall has been a huge fans favourite at the Robins since joining from Newcastle Knights at the end of 2019. He helped fire them to within 80 minutes of a maiden Grand Final two years ago and it would be a fitting finale for a glorious career if the ex-Sydney Rooster got them to Wembley. Kenny-Dowall said: “I’ve never played there. I played at Olympic Stadium with New Zealand but not Wembley.
“I’ve just been talking to (KR assistant) Danny McGuire who’s been there six times. He told me I’d never experience anything like it. We know that’s on offer. We have to get through this game, obviously, and that’s our focus. But there’s a great reward there at the end if we can really put together some quality performances.”
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Depleted Rovers are missing six regulars through injury including Aussie full-back Lachlan Coote and England stand-off Jordan Abdull. But Dream Team star Kenny-Dowall maintained: “We’re still confident with the team we’re putting out. I know we have faced adversity with injuries but we’ve guys lining up that have been waiting for their opportunity. As a club, this is where we want to be: playing big games. Saturday is a big game and we have everything to play for."
Hull KR's Shaun Kenny-Dowall in action in their Challenge Cup game against Batley Bulldogs (Mick Atkins/ProSports/REX/Shutterstock)And Kenny-Dowall to sign off with a trophy? He said: "It would be great - for the club. We’ve been in and around where we want to be but haven’t gone to that next level. This is a great opportunity to seize the moment and put together some performances.”
Salford beat KR at Magic Weekend 26-16 just a fortnight ago. Kenny-Dowall, nominated for the Golden Boot as the world's best player in 2010, admitted: “They play an exciting style of rugby. They love to throw the ball around. What they do with their spine with Ryan Brierley, Brodie Croft and Marc Sneyd, they connect really well and expansively.
"We got a great look at them two weeks ago but it’s not really about them, it’s about us and what we can control. We will have to be a lot better if we’re going to give ourselves a chance and we know where we need to strengthen up to do that.”