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Hull FC 0-40 Hull KR: Highlights, player ratings and talking points

It’s Easter weekend which signifies the time of the year when we’re treated to the Hull derby, and this one was a classic if you’re a Hull KR fan. Rovers ran out huge victors against a hapless Hull FC as they nilled their neighbours at their own ground.

Highlights:

Sky coverage a shocker?
The first and main talking point was the horror show that Sky had with their coverage in which many viewers at home found the game to be delayed and in plenty of cases the visuals were constantly skipping. Given Sky are set to broadcast every game during this Rivals Round it wasn’t the start the broadcasters will have wanted for their big weekend.

Abdull’s boot unlocks FC defence
First blood in the game came on the eighth minute mark and it was Jordan Abdull at the heart of it once again. Rather than the huge bomb style kicks that troubled Leeds last week, this was a delicate chip that was tipped back by returning skipper Shaun Kenny-Dowall allowing Mikey Lewis to offload to Ryan Hall in the corner.

Abdull’s boot causes more full-back nightmares
After a period of panic in defence Rovers used their number seven’s key asset to get out of trouble. A booming kick from halfway saw Jamie Shaul all over the place and his attempted kick at the ball fell straight to Tom Opacic who smartly picked up and walked over. Some will question Shaul but as dubbed by Jon Wells it was an “uncatchable” ball.

Tempers boil over and Rovers extend their lead
Local lad Scott Taylor had earlier come on and engaged in a minor push and shove with Elliot Minchella, who had earlier had a sure-fire try pulled back for a forward pass. The boiling point was reached when Kane Evans hit Matt Parcell incredibly high around the neck, with the ensuing melee being something Jack Smith managed to keep enough of a lid on it. KR opting for the penalty affirmed their control on the game and the scoreboard.

Clifford injury triggers tempers
Jake Clifford was the recipient of a tackle from James Batchelor that was deemed by Jack Smith a hip-drop tackle. Clifford left the field injured and Batchelor left the field for the sin bin, but the resulting play saw Jesse Sue go low on a stationary Brad Dwyer which the FC players took exception to triggering yet another round of pushing and shoving.

Frantic last five minutes before the half
As we closed in on half time the only way to describe the final five minutes was just simple mayhem. KR constantly were defending their line and they had a second GLDO that failed to reach ten metres. Jesse Sue landed another tackle that he should have arguably seen yellow for just before the hooter for half-time blew, and the teams could have a much needed 15 minutes to settle their tempers.

Batch back on and back on the scoresheet
James Batchelor returned from his sin bin and managed to score Rovers third try of the day having been slid in by Jordan Abdull at close range. That wasn’t Abdull’s only contribution to the try though, again it was his huge kick that set up the brilliant field position. FC captain Carlos Tuimavave juggled and spilt the kick allowing Rovers the territory and it was from the scrum that Batchelor scored and made it 20-0.

Black and Whites wave the white flag
Just minutes after Coote’s boot converted Batchelor’s try to make it 20-0, he was scoring a try and converting again to make it 26-0. A smart move on the left flank saw Ryan Hall set loose and full-back Coote was there in support to effectively kill off any hopes for Hull FC.

Second half scorefest
Following Coote’s score in the 51st the FC fans flooded out of the stadium and the points kept flooding in for Rovers. Ryan Hall added his second with a brilliant finish, however worryingly for FC it came off a set-piece scrum play 40 yards out. Hall then turned provider allowing Mikey Lewis to score another derby day try, before completing his hattrick courtesy of a brilliant Lewis pass late on for a final score line of 40-0.

Talking points:

Should Rovers have gone down to 11?
Just two tackles after Jake Clifford was injured in a hip-drop tackle from James Batchelor, for which the Rovers man saw yellow, Jesse Sue went in around the knee of a stationary Brad Dwyer who already had three Rovers men on him. Had he been any lower then it could have spelt disaster for Dwyer but Sky pundit Phil Clarke wasn’t happy with it, and had Rovers lost another man it could have been a different game.

Sold out stadium smashes decade long record
Reported as a sell-out the game was viewed by an official attendance of 20,895 which was the highest that FC has recorded since April 2009. There’s a huge thirst for Super League at the moment and a crowd of over 20,000 is always something to celebrate.

Abdull for Man of Steel?
Every time Jordan Abdull plays he seems to dominate and catch the attention and this is the second consecutive game where he’s absolutely terrorised a set of opposition backs. At one point on comms Phil Clarke made the point that if George Williams doesn’t win Man of Steel then could it be that Abdull had pipped him to it. Well on current form it certainly seems a two-horse race between the two English halves.

Hall edges closer to record
Ryan Hall is one of the very best wingers to ever grace Super League but to still be scoring hatrricks in the biggest games at the age of 35 is freakish. His treble today took his tally to 231, meaning he’s just 16 shy of Danny McGuire’s all-time Super League try-scoring record of 247. With another year already added to his deal it’s looking like he’s banging the door down on the record next season.

Time for change at FC?
Tony Smith is only eight Super League games into his time as Hull FC boss and his whole career certainly highlights his quality, but it’s simply not working at Hull FC. Granted he couldn’t help the fact Tex Hoy was out injured or that Jake Clifford got injured but this was the sixth loss in a row, and it wasn’t remotely close either. It could be a case of blooding young talent this season, particularly given that Ben McNamara was their shining light in defeat today.

Player Ratings

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