FOR many fans, Warrington Wolves' match against Hull KR will be worth more than just two Super League points.

Wolves will prepare as normal for Sunday's game, as is the only way for a professional club, but there is no denying that the game has an extra importance because of what happened last year.

Hull KR, then a National League One club, consigned Wolves to a shock Challenge Cup quarter-final defeat on June 4, 2006.

It was the first time Wolves had ever been beaten by a lower division club in the Challenge Cup. It almost ruined their season.

Few who were at Craven Park that day will ever forget the game. It had been so unexpected.

One of the first games I looked for when the 2007 fixture list was announced was Hull KR and, even without a potential home debut for Adrian Morley, this is a game that many have been looking forward to.

No-one at Warrington Wolves needs to be told that they let themselves down that day and there are still enough of those players around for me to be confident that no extra motivation will be required on Sunday.

They will have their work cut out, though, because Hull KR have long since proved that Challenge Cup win was no fluke.

They gained promotion to Super League at The Halliwell Jones in October and some thought that was the limit of their possibilities, but they were wrong.

Rovers have a superb coach in Justin Morgan and they have had a fantastic start to Super League.

If Wolves are without halves Chris Bridge and Lee Briers, they will need all of Morley's influence and experience on Sunday.

They will also need a few more decisions to go their way.

Ashley Klein did them no favours against St Helens on Friday and, for some reason, Warrington official Phil Bentham was put in the awkward position of being the video referee in his home town.

It is not the first time this year it has happened - St Helens ref Steve Ganson was the video official for Saints the other week - and I am sure the officials are professional enough not to let the town where they come from affect their decisions.

But fans cannot help but wonder if they only made that decision because they come from this town or that town.

As Ganson is not allowed to referee St Helens and Bentham is not allowed to referee Warrington, the same should apply to who is appointed as a video referee.

The move to make six referees full time is a positive one but the policy seems to be that the sextet have to do everything to justify their salary.

Thus they are the video referees at every game and other referees have little chance to take charge of a Super League match.

Hence Warrington's Karl Kirkpatrick, widely regarded as one of the top refs in the country, was sidelined because he did not want to give up his banking job and go full time.

Yes, in time, the full-time referees should be given priority. But you cannot ignore people who have shown the ability to do the job, just because they cannot go full time.

When football referees went full time, was David Elleray forgotten about because he did not want to give up his job as a schoolmaster? He was not.

They knew he was one of the best they had.