Hull FC’s youngsters were left disappointed after Sam Hall’s late try sealed a narrow victory for Castleford Tigers Under 19s this afternoon.
In a close affair, the lead exchanged hands several times, the Tigers drew first blood through Caelum Jordan, but Hull came back swinging through Jermarie Chatham and Jacob Hookem’s try.
Jordan’s second try on the stroke of half-time drew the scores level at the interval before Ben Wood restored the Tigers’ lead just after the break.
Jude Ferreira and Marcus Walker scored a quickfire double for the Black & Whites, but it was Hall’s late converted try that decided the outcome at the University of Hull.
The Match
Castleford had recorded a big victory over Hull’s youngsters earlier in the season and they started the afternoon in a similar ruthless fashion. Jason Qareqare was involved in the sweeping move which saw Jordan stroll in at the corner with just three minutes played.
Having soaked up plenty of pressure inside their own half, Hull profited from some ill-discipline from the visitors and responded through Welsh winger Chatham in the corner, scoring his first try of the season.
Hull’s first try of the afternoon appeared to have awoken the beast as they soon went over for their second. Some second-phase play opened up the space for Hookem to dart over the whitewash.
But on the stroke of half-time, the visitors levelled the scores when Jordan took advantage of the extra man on the right side of the field.
HALF-TIME: Hull 10-10 Tigers
The Tigers piled on the pressure at the start of the second half and reclaimed the lead after a goal-line drop-out. Working their way back towards the try line, Ben Wood ran a strong lead line underneath the sticks and had enough momentum to get over the whitewash.
It didn’t take long for the Black & Whites to respond again. Hookem’s crossfield kick was kept alive and Davy Litten’s floated pass to Ferreira gave the outside back a clear passage to the try line.
Having repelled some spirited Tigers attack, Hull were back in front thanks to some tidy structured play of their own. Callum Rutland picked a perfect pass to Walker, and the centre cruised over.
Hookem converted Walker’s try to give Hull a 20-16 lead with just under 15 minutes remaining.
But the Tigers snatched a late victory when Hall scooped the ball up from dummy half and crashed over under the sticks, meaning Adam Rusling had the simple task of slotting over the conversion to hand Castleford a narrow victory.
FULL-TIME: Hull 20-22 Tigers
Squads & Scorers
Hull: Litten, Wacokecoke, Ferreira, Walker, Chatham, Worthington, Hookem, Wallis, Rutland, Laidlaw, Severs, Stewart, Gibson
Hull Interchanges: Jebson, Mafi, Morley, Petrie, Speed, Trulson, Yeaman
Hull Tries: Chatham, Hookem, Ferreira, Walker
Hull Goals: Hookem (2/4)
Tigers Tries: Jordan (2), Wood, Hall
Tigers Goals: Rusling (3/4)