As Hull KR claimed a famous golden point win over Wigan Warriors yesterday in the Challenge Cup semi-final at Leeds Rhinos’ Headingley, there could be no denying that the key moment was the red card to Joe Shorrocks.
Shorrocks hit Mikey Lewis hard at the start of the second half. Liam Moore the official waved play on but Lewis struggled to recover.
The incident was then reviewed by the video referee Ben Thaler who spotted contact with the head and Shorrocks was sent off.
However, despite how groggy Lewis was, he didn’t go off with a HIA and Kevin Brown questioned this on BBC:
“Yeah, the only thing I would say is, if he’s hitting that hard in the head, surely there should be an HIA.
“So, you can’t really have one without the other. If he’s sending him off because he’s hit him in the head at that force, I actually think he’s slid up and hit him in the neck, and that’s why Mikey Lewis has been able to play on.
“So, yeah, it’s a difficult one, but we don’t want to see that in the game, do we? We don’t want to see people getting whacked in the face, ultimately.”
This was an interesting talking point that clouded a great game.
The game has been a pulsating affair in the wet. The Robins could have been forgiven for feeling hard done by when Ryan Hall pulled out of the side late before kick-off but they stood up to early pressure before a delightful scrum move saw Louis Senior slide in at the corner.
Hall’s injury saw Mikey Lewis moved to fullback and Ethan Ryan moved to the wing. Lewis showed his worth with amazing footwork to confuse the Wigan chasers when they looked to trap him in goal.
Hull KR had the better of the first half but they were behind when Jai Field was given enough space to weave through and score in the corner.
Up against it at this point in the game, Shaun Kenny-Dowall turned the game when he intercepted but sadly he couldn’t go the distance but the Robins were now building pressure.
After absorbing a spell of pressure themselves, Wigan went down field and nailed a penalty to make it 8-4.
As aforementioned, the Warriors have now added to their lead after a second penalty from Harry Smith, his third goal of the game to give them a 10-4 lead which was cancelled out by an Ethan Ryan try.
A deserved win for Hull KR and a special performance from the Robins in a brilliant semi-final, there is no getting away from the red card as the game’s big moment in the contest.
