Local pride was at stake as the second Hull derby of the season kicked off at the KCOM Stadium, home of the Black & Whites. KR picked up the two points, with a try in the last few of seconds, when the two sides met in the opening round fixture back in early February. But FC have had the better opening to the season and are currently four points ahead of their opponents in the league table.
Lee Radford has three of his stars back in the squad as Scott Taylor and Masi Matongo returned from injury and Mickey Paea from suspension. Hull KR also have reason to celebrate as they also welcome back three stars from injury with Sean Lunt, Mitch Garbutt and Lee Jewitt all back in the seventeen.
Form was out of the window, this was all about much more than recent results.
The atmosphere was intense, a pressure cooker for both sides in the Hull sun. Tommy Lee grounded the ball on the line on four minutes but the try was ruled out for a double movement, lifting the already grounded arm to get the ball on the line.
Instead it was the Airlie Birds who got the first try of the game on eight when Jake Connor found a path between the Robins defenders from ten metres to run the angle and go to ground to get the ball down to the home roars. Marc Sneyd added the conversion for a 6-0 advantage.
It was game on after twelve minutes as Jimmy Keinhorst took a Craig Hall short pass to crash the line and ground. Hall added the conversion to level the scores.
It was end to end stuff when on fifteen Jack Logan benefitted from a Connor kick to the corner as he rose to collect the high ball and step over the line to score. Sneyd added the extras two, the home lead restored. Three minutes later they were in again as Connor, and Connor Wynne combined to send Logan over for his second. Sneyd added the two, FC with a buffer.
A Josh Drinkwater 40-20 on thirty-five and on the next set Sika Manu knocked in attempting to gather in a grubber kick. On the second play from the scrum a delightful passing interchange, Joel Tomkins pushing an inside pass to Craig Hall to go in. Hall added the conversion to reduce the FC lead to six points as the half time hooter sounded.
Two minutes after the restart Mark Minichiello scored a superb forty metre solo try as he shrugged off a tackle, threw a dummy and then outpaced the last tackler. Sneyd added the goal for 24-12.
A Sneyd penalty on fifty extended the lead to fourteen points.
The game was won on sixty-two after Joe Westerman rebounded off the post pad to drop over the line for the fifth FC try of the afternoon. Sneyd kicked the conversion as the home side took a 32-12 lead.
Ben Crooks was sin-binned for a shoulder charge on sixty-five and was followed by Scott Taylor who tried to dish out retribution.
On sixty-eigh Josh Griffin had the ball stripped into the goal area and Albert Kelly got a hand on the loose ball to ground for the try. Sneyd kicked the conversion and into the last ten minutes FC took an emphatic 38-12 lead.
Micky Paea was next to cross in what was turning into a Black & White procession as he pushed his way through two unenthusiatic KR tackles. Sneyd was once again accurate with the boot, it was turning into a comprehensive win.
Logan got his hat-trick try on seventy-four after taking a Kelly pass to go down the right wing for a sixty metre finish. Sneyd’s boot added the two points to bring up the fifty.
Straight from the kick off Kelly broke downfield before finding Wynne in support to make it the remaining twenty metres to score under the sticks. Sneyd added his tenth kick of the afternoon for 56-12, KR totally decimated in the second half.
It was a close game for the opening forty minutes but a sensational second half performance from Hull FC blew away a Hull KR side who could barely get a touch, and when they could there was nothing that they could do with the football. The Airlie Birds have had patchy home form but this big win gives them a platform to build on over the coming weeks as they seek to secure a play-off place.
FC: Wynne (T), Logan (3T), Tuimavave, Griffin (T), Faraimo, Connor (T), Sneyd (10G), Taylor (SB on 65), Houghton, Paea (T), Minichiello (T), Lane, Ellis. Subs: Matongo, Westerman (T), Manu, Kelly (T).
KR: Hall (T, 2G), Crooks (SB on 65), Keinhorst (T), Linnett, Oakes, McGuire, Drinkwater, Mulhern, Lee, Jewitt, Tomkins, Hauraki, Lawler. Subs: Garbutt, Addy, Lunt, Harrison.
Referee: Ben Thaler.
Half-Time: 18-12.
Full-Time: 56-12.
Attendance: 20,044.
