Andy Last has offered his assessment of his Hull FC side’s 34-20 defeat to Hull KR this evening.
The Black and Whites suffered their latest derby defeat, as they remain without a win over their biggest rivals since 2023.
The opening moments looked like that streak was finally going to end, as two early tries from Joe Batchelor and Davy Litten gave them a 12-0 lead after the opening 10 minutes.
However, a shift in momentum saw the Robins head into the sheds level at 12-12, before a disappointing second half collapse from the home side allowed Willie Peters’ men to score 16 unanswered points in as many minutes.
Last spoke to Sky Sports after the defeat, and said: “We started the game really well, got to a 12-0 start and then last 15 minutes of that first half, they just had to get a little bit of ascendancy in the ruck and we couldn’t control it and we continued a couple of soft tries.
“Second half, we just couldn’t get out of our half. Hull KR are very good at suffocating your field position, and then we got an opportunity with 15 minutes to go. We didn’t show enough patience to keep them camped down their end.
“The Joe Burgess try was a real back-breaker. You’ve got to give credit to Hull KR, they were the better team.”
Reflecting on that opening 10 minutes, and how the Black and Whites couldn’t hold on to that ascendancy and momentum, Last said: “I thought we controlled large parts of the game in that first half really well, the momentum just went in the ruck and they started to get a little bit of speed in there.
“Jez Litten, no surprise he got Man of the Match. He’s just an outstanding player, someone I’ve got a lot of respect for, and he just dominated large parts of the game for Hull KR and it was a lesson for us.
He continued: “I’m really, really proud of the boys and their efforts and the mountain people that we’ve got in. [It’s the] biggest crowd that we’ve had at home and they’re sticking by us and just disappointed that we weren’t able to get a win for them.”
Offering a word to those fans, who have stuck by the side through thick and thin, the interim boss said: “That’s what Hull FC supporters do. Their loyalty is never in question, they turn up in big numbers home and away, they always support the team.
“We just haven’t given them enough to sing about, and we haven’t given them enough to be proud about. [We’re] really disappointed with the amount of losses that we’ve had, but the commitment was there, we’re just lacking a little bit of quality and I know they’ll stick with us.
“There’s plenty of positives coming, you know, and it’s going to be exciting moving forward.”
