Hull FC claimed their fourth Super League victory of the season as they beat Castleford Tigers 24-14 at Wheldon Road.
Here’s our verdict.
Action
Herman Ese’ese was the man celebrated before kick-off as the Black and Whites announced the star forward had signed a new three-year deal and it didn’t take the prop long to underline his worth against Castleford.
Hitting a crash ball on the short side, Ese’ese was too big and too strong as he got Hull off on the right foot and scored his fourth try in as many games.
The Black and Whites were threatening to run away with the game early after establishing clear dominance at Wheldon Road, but the Tigers stemmed the flow and hit back as Joe Westerman and Zac Cini combined to put Josh Simm away down the line. Simm looked inside and found the support run of Rowan Milnes, who touched down to level the scores.
Ese’ese was a constant threat on the night, though, and it was his offload that laid the platform for Hull’s second as Tom Briscoe broke through the line before Jack Ashworth put Aidan Sezer over the whitewash.
Hull were slightly fortunate in the build up to their third, scored by Tom Briscoe, with Castleford forward Dan Okoro being penalised harshly on the Hull line in the build-up. However, that doesn’t take away from the skill on show from the Black and Whites as Jordan Rapana made a darting run from dummy half before combining with Cade Cust to put Briscoe over.
Innes Senior was shown a yellow card controversially for connecting with Cust’s head and Hull made the most of their numerical advantage as Sezer put Lewis Martin over the line. And, a Sezer penalty saw Hull extend their lead with around 10 minutes remaining.
Tex Hoy showed his class against his former club to touch down late before Simm found another but they were nothing more than a consolation efforts as the Tigers succumbed to yet another Super League defeat.
Star man
Herman Ese’ese. Too big, too powerful, too good. The forward marked his new contract by terrorising Castleford and getting himself on the scoresheet, too.
Good day for
Tom Briscoe. The winger got himself over the line in the first half of the contest but found open space to exploit on a number of occasions at Wheldon Road and made plenty of metres.
Bad day for
Danny McGuire. His side produced a spirited performance on home soil but they fell to their fifth Super League defeat of the season. McGuire has every right to question a number of refereeing calls, but he can have little complaints about who were the better team on the night.
Bigger picture
John Cartwright’s Hull FC go marching on and at the time of writing they now sit one point behind league leaders Hull KR in second place. Castleford could do with some luck, but the pressure to get a result is certainly building at Wheldon Road.
Teams
Castleford Tigers: Tex Hoy; Josh Simm, Zac Cini, Sam Wood, Innes Senior; Daejarn Asi, Rowan Milnes; Brad Singleton, Judah Rimbu, George Lawler; Josh Hodson, Alex Mellor; Joe Westerman
Bench: Cain Robb, George Griffin, Muizz Mustapha, Dan Okoro.
Hull FC: Jordan Rapana; Tom Briscoe, Davy Litten, Ed Chamberlain, Lewis Martin; Cade Cust, Aidan Sezer; Herman Ese’ese, Amir Bourouh, Liam Knight; Jordan Lane, Brad Fash; John Asiata
Bench: Jack Ashworth, Sam Eseh, Logan Moy, Will Kirby.
⏱️ 𝗙𝗨𝗟𝗟-𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘: Castleford Tigers 14-24 Hull FC
Our unbeaten run on the road continues 👏🎉
⚫️⚪️ #COYH | @ecostrad pic.twitter.com/zJVMfveIfX
— Hull FC (@hullfcofficial) March 27, 2025
