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Ian Watson has lauded the return of Michael Lawrence and Chris McQueen to the side and it's impact on the group as they face Hull Kingston Rovers, tonight at 7:30pm. 

“Bruno (Michael Lawrence) loves playing the game. He’s going to want to come in and compete" said Watson, "Chris McQueen loves the game and competes hard all the time."

“Those guys coming back in along with Ricky Leutele and Jermaine McGillvary, who came back last week, should be better for their first run."

Watson was full of praise for opposition coach, Tony Smith, and said the side will be desperate to get the result and will represent a challenge for the Giants

“Tony Smith cherry-picked at the end of last year and just added that little bit of quality into the team to make them more of a threat.

“They will be desperate to get the result but that’s what I want us to be as well, I want us to be desperate to get the result."

“It can’t be that you’re getting to the end of the season and there’s nothing to aim for. For me, there’s always something to play for and to compete for. So we have to be as desperate as what Hull KR will be to get the result.”

Watson spoke about the plans for 2022, and how he wants his side to end the season with a flourish, to build momentum for the next campaign.

“We have already spoken about how we want to have the attitude that we want to win every game we play until the end of the season.

“It’s important for us to continue building towards next year. The key thing for us is that we want to learn but we want to win while we learn, especially now we’ve got a couple more experienced players back in as well. That will massively help.

Known for their flamboyant style, Watson praised the KR attack and paid particular attention to the left edge, which has caused many defenders a problem this year.

“They have real quality there; Shaun Kenny Dowall, Ryan Hall on that left edge, and they did have Jordan Abdull too but Rowan Milnes has stepped in there nicely now.

“They have that consistency of playing together and understanding what each of their strengths and weaknesses are. That’s not to be underestimated.

“Then put Kane Linett in there as well and him, Ryan Hall and Kenny-Dowall are all very experienced players who have played at the top level.

“They are ones to be aware of for us but we have to pose our own threats. We feel we have good players on our right edge as well.

“When you look at Leroy Cudjoe and Jermaine McGillvary, they’ve played at the top end of the game and this should be a real challenge for them to see who can get the better of each other.

“In the first game, the left edge of Hull KR probably got the better of us a little bit so we need to make sure we’re better than that this time.”