Hull FC’s Scholars scored fifteen tries in their final match of the year as they put London Broncos Under 16s to the sword in the capital city.
The Black & Whites ran out resounding 86-6 winners at Richmond Athletic Ground, with Jon Turner, Henry Watkinson, Toby Matson, Leon Hayward, Lennon Nicholson and Callum Barley all scoring braces.
Spine players Joe Thompson, Callum Kemp and Josh Horne all contributed heavily to the procession with impressive performances, and all three completed the scoring for Richard Tate’s side, recording their biggest win of the season.
The Match
It didn’t take long for Hull’s Scholars to take the lead, scoring at the end of the opening set of the match. Callum Kemp’s offload was taken in by Jon Turner, and the front-rower barged over from ten metres out.
Their early lead was extended in double-quick time when Joe Thompson’s long-range pass allowed the in-form Henry Watkinson to dive in at the right corner, with the winger going over for a try in a sixth consecutive match.
Ten minutes had barely been played before the Black & Whites were in for a third try as their blistering start in the nation’s capital continued. Having moved the ball around in the early stages, Hull took a more direct approach as Josh Horne’s neat footwork allowed him to dart through the London defensive line and score his second try of the year.
Having failed to complete back-to-back sets, the writing was on the wall for the young Broncos, who conceded a fourth try with little more than fourteen minutes gone. Lennon Nicholson straightened a move up, before offloading to the spritely fullback Joe Thompson, who put his foot down to score under the sticks from 20 metres out.
Alistair Swyer’s expert 40/20 out of dummy-half put FC in a prime position to strike again and that’s what they did on play two. Thompson turned provider once again as his cutout pass this time found left winger Toby Matson, who had the simplest of scoring opportunities.
London’s wingers had been defending up in the line deep into Hull FC sets, and as all smart halfbacks do, Callum Kemp was aware of the situation. So when his kick turned Matis Walton around, Henry Watkinson and Leon Hayward pounced for the visitors, with the latter dotting the loose ball down in the in-goal area as the Black & Whites made it six first-half tries.
Another two four-pointers followed before the break as FC raced into a convincing 44-0 lead. First, more London carelessness with possession inside their own half allowed Hayward to cross for his second of the afternoon, before halfback Kemp exposed the Broncos on a shortside play, running the ball himself to score.
HALF-TIME: Broncos Scholars 0-44 Hull Scholars
Hull had dominated the first-half and looked to be on course for a clean sheet, but those hopes were dashed when fullback Will Randall scored from close range early in the second-half.
The Black & Whites, who were on the wrong end of a second-half comeback in their last outing against Castleford, certainly wouldn’t have had too many fears of a repeat, such was their comfortable lead, but they still had to weather a wave of Broncos pressure after Randall got the hosts of the mark.
Having come through a challenging spell, Hull regained control of the match when Thompson drew in the London winger and sent Watkinson in for his second try of the game.
Ellis Chapman, off the bench for Hull in the second-half, didn’t take long to get in and amongst the action. His short pass sent Lennon Nicholson through the Broncos defensive line just inside his own half, and the powerful back-rower fended off fullback Randall on his way to scoring.
Hull’s second-half onslaught was gathering momentum and Horne’s blindside pass to Turner caught the Broncos defence napping, allowing the big prop to crash over from close range.
Horne added another assist to his tally for the afternoon, offloading the ball with two London defenders on his back and finding Callum Barley on his inside shoulder as he scored another Hull FC try.
A rampaging move from Hull inside their own half, which started with a Turner offload to Nicholson, saw the back-rower fend off three Broncos defenders on his way to finishing off a cut-throat play.
Once more, the Black & Whites slipped the net inside their own half when Barley escaped the clutches of a handful of tired defenders and streaked clear from the fullback to claim his brace for the afternoon.
Instead of their direct approach, which had yielded great success in the second-half, Hull went back to some nice ball-playing Rugby League late in the game. But it still found a way through the defensive line, with McCracken sending his rapid winger Matson in down the left touchline.
Two tries almost turned into three in the last minute of the game for Matson. Halfbacks Kemp and Chapman linked up in a scrum play, with the latter sending Matson into the clear from 80 metres out. Having cleared three defenders, second-rower Toby Davies got his head down and completed a marvellous tackle on the winger just ten metres out from the try line, denying Matson a hat-trick in the capital.
FULL-TIME: Broncos Scholars 6-86 Hull Scholars
Squads & Scorers
Hull: Thompson, Matson, Yorke, Hayward, Watkinson, C Kemp, Horne, Howe, Swyer, Turner, Nicholson, Calvert, J Smith
Hull Interchanges: Barley, Chapman, Davies, George, McCracken, C Smith, Wilson
Hull Tries: Turner (2), Watkinson (2), Horne, Thompson, Matson (2), Hayward (2), C Kemp, Nicholson (2), Barley (2)
Hull Goals: Thompson (6/8), Davies (7/7)
Broncos: Randall, Walton, Newbury-Kemp, Riley, Ferrier, Svenson-Davies, Ratcliffe, Atherton, Baxter, Davies, Burdorf, Smith
Broncos Interchanges: Allinson, Glanville, Hislop, Perry, Ward, Woodard, Versavel
Broncos Tries: Randall
Broncos Goals: Randall (1/1)
STORY SPONSOR
