Super League: Hull KR 6-16 Hull FC - Airlie Birds keep play-off hopes alive
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Adam Swift ran 70 metres to bring Hull into the game and later added a crucial second
Betfred Super League |
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Hull KR (6) 6 |
Try: Walker Goal: Milnes |
Hull FC (0) 16 |
Tries: Swift 2, Sao Goals: Clifford 2 |
Hull FC kept their Super League play-off hopes alive with a priceless derby victory over rivals Hull KR, their first at Craven Park since March 2018.
The Black and Whites were humbled 40-0 at home earlier in the season but avenged that loss in an error-strewn, fractious derby in warm conditions.
Jack Walker gave Rovers a first-half lead, as they dominated things.
Adam Swift's double either side of Ligi Sao's plunge-over turned the game in the second 40 as Hull pulled away.
Shaun Kenny-Dowall was sin-binned for 10 minutes just short of the hour and it proved a telling absence as Hull plundered points in that period.
This result leaves Hull four points off sixth-placed Salford in the last play-off spot, while Rovers are two points below the Red Devils in the table.
It was a bruising contest, with Rovers losing Kane Linnett to a failed head injury assessment and Mikey Lewis went off later on with a head knock, while the Airlie Birds saw Tex Hoy limp off with a recurrence of a hamstring issue.
For Black and Whites boss Tony Smith, this was a triumphant return to his old club, and the perfect response to April's early-season demolition.
His opposite number Willie Peters looked like it would be his day at half-time, as the dynamic Mikey Lewis danced through tackles and offloaded to Walker to score for an early advantage.
The hosts looked the sharper, the more dangerous of the two teams before the break with Lewis, Ethan Ryan and Walker popping up, but still gave away opportunities as they failed to execute.
By contrast Hull struggled for consistent possession and control, but turned that around after half-time.
The pack, through Sao, Chris Satae and Jack Brown started to make inroads, allowing Brad Dwyer, Jake Clifford and Jake Trueman to create on the back of that.
Yet it was Danny Houghton, in his 39th derby, who set the tone with brutally-stubborn defence and craft with the ball - particularly when Hoy went off and he moved into the halves.
Swift's crucial game-changer came from a superb Cam Scott round-the-corner offload followed by his pace, while his second saw him finish a slick move to the left.
Dwyer jumped out between those two scores to feed Sao, who bashed his way through to create a lead and send the away contingent at a sold-out stadium into ecstasy.
Despite the disappointment of the loss to their biggest rivals, Hull KR must now switch their attention to the Challenge Cup semi-finals and their own bid to make the play-offs.
Hull KR head coach Willie Peters told BBC Radio Humberside:
"I thought we let ourselves down today with our attack, we didn't have any real flow. Defensively in that first half we were turning up for each other and defended extremely well.
"We had an opportunity to win that game and didn't know how to close it out. I thought that first try they scored in the first half was disappointing because we had them where we wanted them.
"It was a system-error at marker, let them go the full length of the field and then we don't recover after that. So, that's the disappointing part.
"[The issues with the attack] are down to personnel. Jack [Walker] has only been with us a short time, Rowan [Milnes] has only played a few games. We've got a young spine, it's not as experienced as Jordan [Abdull - injured] and Lachlan [Coote - retired]. But, it should look better than that."
Hull FC head coach Tony Smith told BBC Radio Humberside:
"I'm pleased for the supporters and the players, it's been hard fought and a tough place to come and win as our record suggests.
"It was pretty average in the first half, I didn't think it was a great game of rugby league, but second half we had a bit more say in the style of the game, the speed and we had to grab hold of the game.
"We had some 'kind' words to each other at half-time, they're good, we knew we had to change some stuff, we were getting thrown over the touchline, overplaying and too many mistakes.
"When we played more direct we got more out of the game and the first set of the half set the tone."
Hull KR: Walker; Ryan, Opacic, Kenny-Dowall, R. Hall; Lewis, Milnes; Kennedy, Litten, King, Keinhorst, Linnett, Hadley
Interchanges: Parcell, Storton, Johnson, Luckley [Aydin]
Hull FC: Hoy; Swift, Scott, Tuimavave, McIntosh; Trueman, Clifford; Taylor, Houghton, Sao, Lane, Fash, Cator
Interchanges: Brown, Gardiner, Dwyer, Satae [Shaul]
Referee: Ben Thaler.
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