HULL KR captain Michael Dobson hopes to rekindle his half-back partnership with Craig Hall on Sunday when facing Hull at the KC Stadium.
With first choice stand-off Travis Burns suspended for the first four rounds of Super League, the smart money is on Hall to play alongside the KR skipper.
Dobson and Hall were the creative fulcrum last season when Blake Green was ruled out of the first 11 league games, and the pair worked well together.
Hall has missed Rovers' first two friendlies because of a foot injury, meaning he and Dobson have just this weekend's game to get their partnership right.
"We would have liked to have Craig playing there last week but he'll be there on Sunday against Hull," Dobson told the Mail.
"It will give him a chance to work on the things we have been working on going into round one, and I'd like it if Craig got the nod to play there because he's a lethal attacking player who can score tries from anywhere on the pitch.
"He can also create space for other players in a split second because he is a very naturally gifted footballer.
"Some of the things he does in training are unbelievable and make you shake your head in disbelief.
"It's good to have him in our squad, and at stand-off he can get his hands on the ball early and make things happen, rather than waiting for the final pass on the wing."
Dobson knows victory in Sunday's derby will prove inconsequential.
Rovers beat Hull 32-16 in last year's friendly, but went on to lose two of the three derbies that mattered in the league.
Despite this, Dobson feels Hull will provide the perfect opponents for their final pre-season warm-up.
"Hull will provide us with a great test. They have a pretty strong squad this season and have built on last year," he said.
"I'm looking forward to seeing where we are at in terms of the squad we have put together.
"We have trained hard but it's different when you play quality opposition.
"We know it's only a friendly but we'll be working on making sure our execution is good.
"Defensively, we want to build on what we did against Wigan as we were very solid.
"It's the last chance to stake a claim for a place."
