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Hull KR hooker Matt Parcell has no regrets about calling time on his illustrious playing career at the age of 31 and is determined to bow out on a high by leading his team to their first Grand Final win over Wigan at Old Trafford.
Parcell, a 2017 winner with Leeds who has been a permanent fixture at Craven Park since moving there on an initial short-term loan spell in 2019, revealed last month that he intends to return to his native Australia and step away from the sport.
He will do so with the cheers of Rovers fans ringing in his ears having been instrumental, alongside other long-term squad members like Ryan Hall and Mikey Lewis, in lifting their club to the brink of their first major trophy in four decades.
“Personally, just to finish my last game by lifting such a great trophy would be an outstanding way to go out,” said Parcell.
“There’s not many people who get to finish their career by playing at Old Trafford, so it’s a privilege and I’ll be doing everything I can to make that dream of winning the title come true.
“But whatever happens I am not going to change my mind. I’ve always been keen to finish up when I’m playing well. It’s a brutal sport and I’d hate to be in a position where I feel I can’t play as well as I could in the past.”
Parcell, who immediately endeared himself to the east Hull faithful by scoring a try on his debut against Hull FC, joined the club at a time when the pain of their shock 2016 relegation to the Championship still lingered.
And he admitted that Saturday night’s showdown is all the more special because of the way in which Rovers, backed by owner Neil Hudgell and latterly inspired by the appointment of Willie Peters, have worked tirelessly to claw their way into title contention.
“Every final is a pretty special occasion, but when you think about the history and what it means to the club and the supporters, it makes it all the more important,” added Parcell.
“I turned up here and played Hull FC in my first game and it was so loud, and I always thought if we had a really good team here the supporters would get behind us.
“I probably wouldn’t have believed it, but it’s been really good to be a part of the transition. Over the last five years we’ve gone from relegation battles to playing a Grand Final, and luckily we’ve made that dream come true.”
Rovers sold their initial allocation of 10,000 tickets within 24 hours of their semi-final win over Warrington, and additional sales will help swell the crowd to more than 65,000, the best for a Grand Final since Parcell helped Leeds beat Castleford in 2017.
Every final is a pretty special occasion, but when you think about the history and what it means to the club and the supporters, it makes it all the more important— Matt Parcell
Victory for Rovers, who have the bonus of bringing captain Elliot Minchella back from a two-match suspension, would give them their first domestic title since 1985 – seven years before Parcell was born – and go some way towards erasing the pain of last year’s Challenge Cup final loss to Leigh.
“We’ve obviously got the experience of Wembley but for a lot of the guys this will be the biggest game they’ve played in,” added Parcell.
“Once the whistle goes it’s all about the game. We don’t have to change anything. We’ve shown over the past three or four months that we’re a good team and all we really have to do is turn up that intensity and do it for longer.
“Wigan are a great team and they’ve shown why over the past two seasons, but we’ve had some really close games against them. We won’t be thinking about those, though. We are just focused on this match and lifting that trophy.”
