Hull FC Academy were left to rue missed opportunities in a 28-10 defeat to Warrington Wolves Under 18s at the Halliwell Jones Stadium yesterday afternoon.
In a close-fought affair in hot weather, Warrington struck first through Josh Lynch, but Hull responded through Zach Jebson’s score before Bobby Shingler and Noah Booth claimed a quickfire double for the hosts.
The Wolves’ quality shone through at key moments in the second half and Leon Hayes put the result beyond any doubt deep into the tie with a personal brace, but Kye Armstrong added a well-deserved consolation score for the visitors in the closing stages.
The Match
As both sides felt one another out in the early stages of the match, both Hull and Warrington coughed up possession in goodball sets with the scores still locked at 0-0.
But Hull blinked first after 18 minutes, as they were a man down on their right defensive edge when Warrington gave the ball some width – Peter Scott with a simple catch-and-pass manoeuvre to put Lynch over in the left corner.
In sweltering conditions, after the water break Hull proved to have the most energy and after forcing a couple of errors, the visitors got off the mark as Sully Medforth fired the perfect pass to Jebson for the centre to dart through a hole in the Warrington defence.
Ten minutes until half-time, Warrington took a 12-4 lead when Ben Hartill’s penalty tap restart was tipped onto interchange forward Shingler to power over underneath the posts, a try that would have no doubt frustrated Michael Shenton.
To compound Shenton’s disappointment, Warrington were in again with their first set after the restart. A quick play-the-ball allowed Adam Holroyd to race into the clear down the right wing, drawing in Hull fullback Logan Moy and supplying Booth to score in the corner.
HALF-TIME: Wolves 16-4 Hull
Both sides cancelled each other out early in the second half, with chances at either end. Hull couldn’t execute a couple of chances on either edge, before Warrington winger Booth was denied by an outstanding cover tackle from FC centre Jebson.
After resolute defences came to the fore, it was going to take something special to break the deadlock in the second half and that came when the Wolves found the blistering pace of winger Lynch on the left flank, with Hayes in support on the inside to touch down beneath the sticks.
As the game grew older, it was proving to be an afternoon that did not belong to the Black & Whites, especially when a chance for Lewis Martin went begging in the left corner.
Then, Hayes claimed his second of the match when he sliced through a tired defensive line from ten metres out, reaching out to score to the left side of the sticks.
Hull’s youngsters may have felt short changed to be heading back to East Yorkshire with a mere four points scored in a game where they had some great chances.
But they were rewarded with another try for their endeavours when Armstrong wriggled over the whitewash in the left corner after Medforth’s quick play-the-ball.
FULL-TIME: Wolves 28-10 Hull
Squads & Scorers
Hull: Moy, Oldridge, Masike, Jebson, Martin, Harman, Medforth, Dulson, Balmforth, Bursell, Severs, Wright, Armstrong
Hull Interchanges: Richards, Shaw, Stipetic, Thompson
Hull Tries: Jebson, Armstrong
Hull Goals: Medforth (1/2)
Wolves: Hughes, Booth, Darbyshire, Scott, Lynch, Doolan, Hayes, Barnes, Hartill, Reddecliff, Holroyd, Tupaea, Green
Wolves Interchanges: Bajer, High, Marshall, Shingler
Wolves Tries: Lynch, Shingler, Booth, Hayes (2)
Wolves Goals: Hayes (2/3), Hughes (2/2)
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