Hull FC v Wigan Warriors verdict as Matt Peet’s side overpower scrappy Hull FC

Wigan Warriors claimed their fourth successive Super League win as they beat Hull FC 36-12 to move back to within two points of the summit.

Here’s our verdict.

Action

Both sides had the opportunity to move up to second on Sunday, but only one could, with both Hull and Wigan keen to keep up the pressure on league leaders Hull KR. It was the Cherry and Whites who established dominance early, though, with their first try coming as a result of a huge mix up between Will Pryce and Aidan Sezer.

Both men hesitated to collect the ball and in doing so, they allowed a Harry Smith kick to bounce between them and into the in-goal area for Bevan French to dot down acrobatically.

Pryce made up for his error by bursting down the field to lay a platform before eventually touching down himself in the corner. But Hull made another mistake immediately after as Lewis Martin misjudged the kick-off, giving Wigan possession and Jai Field the invitation he needed to touch down in the corner

The Black and Whites hit back again, as Harvey Barron scored on his return to the side, collecting an inch perfect Aidan Sezer cross-field kick.

A mixture of soft defence and some questionable officiating allowed Wigan to build up a dominant lead going into the break though.

Junior Nsemba scored Wigan’s third, much to the the displeasure of the Hull fans, who saw Bevan French’s pass roll forward on the ground. The home supporters were incensed even further when Jake Wardle touched down just before the break despite calls for an obstruction on the play as the centre strolled home.

There was more controversy at the start of the second half as Abbas Miski was awarded a try after five agonising minutes of video referee Ben Thaler looking at the footage of him touching down in the corner under a crowd of Hull bodies.

With 15 minutes to go, Wigan made sure of the points as a Davy Litten offload was intercepted by Liam Farrell who found French immediately and watched on as the half-back sped away to finish from 80 metres. Nsemba got his second in the final 10 minutes as a Barron offload was collected by Jake Wardle, who put the back-rower over.

Liam Knight was sin-binned late on for a reckless shot.

Star man

Bevan French. Two tries on the day for the Australian and both came from putting himself in the right place at the right time.

Good day for

Wigan Warriors. Back to within two points of league leaders Hull KR with a clinical and dominant showing.

Bad day for

Hull FC. The Black and Whites would have every right to feel aggrieved at some of the officiating, but they were mostly the architects of their own downfall. They regularly fell off tackles, made poor reads and dropped the ball in attack.

Bigger picture

That’s two losses in a row for the home side and they remain without a home win all season. Fortunately for them they don’t play at the MKM Stadium again until June 13, with Huddersfield Giants waiting for them at Magic Weekend.

Wigan have now won four on the spin and they’re starting to build up a real head of steam as they attempt to chase down the Robins.

Hull FC v Wigan Warriors teams 

Hull FC: Will Pryce; Harvey Barron, Tom Briscoe, Davy Litten, Lewis Martin; Cade Cust, Aidan Sezer; Herman Ese’ese, Amir Bourouh, Liam Knight; Zak Hardaker, Jack Ashworth; John Asiata

Bench: Ed Chamberlain, Yusuf Aydin, Denive Balmforth, Matty Laidlaw.

Wigan Warriors: Jai Field; Abbas Miski, Adam Keighran, Jake Wardle, Liam Marshall; Bevan French, Harry Smith; Liam Byrne, Brad O’Neill, Sam Walters; Junior Nsemba, Liam Farrell, Kaide Ellis.

Bench: Luke Thompson, Kruise Leeming, Harvie Hill, Zach Eckersley.