Super League: Hull Kingston Rovers 52-22 Salford Red Devils

Before scoring a hat-trick against Salford, Danny McGuire had scored just two tries for Hull KR in Super League

Danny McGuire scored a hat-trick as Hull KR beat Salford to keep their slim Super League top eight hopes alive.

Tries from Ryan Shaw, Adam Quinlan, Will Oakes, James Greenwood, McGuire and Joel Tomkins put Rovers 36-6 up at the break after Salford's Greg Johnson had opened the scoring.

McGuire went over twice more as Rovers recorded back-to-back Super League wins for the first time in three years.

The victory also lifted Rovers above Salford to 10th in the table.

With three regular season matches remaining, both Rovers and Salford can avoid finishing in the bottom four and the battle to secure their Super League status via the Qualifiers.

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However, with experienced former Salford and Catalans half-back Todd Carney joining Rovers and once again linking up with former Australia coach Tim Sheens, the east Yorkshire side are on a high.

Salford, through, are struggling, with the defeat by nearest rivals Hull KR the nadir of a recent run which has seen them win just once in eight Super League matches.

Despite taking an early lead through Johnson, who was later forced out with an ankle injury, the Red Devils failed to match the hosts in the first-half.

And while Salford's Junior Sa'u got the first try of the second half - and managed to contribute a second with Jake Bibby also going over - Rovers eased to victory thanks to a second Oakes try and then a second-half double from Super League's record try scorer McGuire.

Forward Danny Tickle also contributed 14 points with the boot, having taken over kicking duties after Rovers lost Shaw in the fist-half with a knee injury.

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Hull KR head coach Tim Sheens told BBC Radio Humberside:

"It was a really good first half, I suppose, but again we gave them a start, which is a bit of a worry.

"Then we had a really good finish to the first half, again like last week, and started well in the second half, then dropped right away, but conditions were tough.

"It's the first back to-back wins since June 2015, I'm told, so [it's good] just to get a little consistency.

"It's maybe a bit late for us, but going into middle eights, if it is going to be middle eights, or Super Eights, you need to be winning, just to get into that rhythm and that confidence."

Salford Red Devils head coach Ian Watson:

"We started as well as we have done for a while. We were in control and dominating field position.

"But as soon as a bit of pressure came on we fell away from the process. We had an arm wrestle for that first 20 minutes but Hull KR turned the tide.

"We needed resilience but didn't have it and they were outstanding on the back of it after that.

"It was a massive game and we spoke about the importance of it. If we continue to play like that we will be in trouble."

Hull KR: Quinlan; Shaw, Blair, Vaivai, Oakes; McGuire, Atkin; Scruton, Lee, Tickle, Greenwood, Tomkins, Kavanagh.

Replacements: Masoe, Lunt, Mulhern, Donaldson.

Salford Red Devils: Chamberlain; Johnson, Bibby, Sa'u, Olpherts; Lui, Shorrocks; Tasi, Wood, Mossop, Lannon, McCarthy, Flanagan.

Replacements: Tomkins, Burke, Murray, Jones.

Referee: Gareth Hewer.