Hull FC secured an epic 34-28 win over their rivals Hull Kingston Rovers after a titanic battle on Magic Weekend. In what has been a cracking few days of rugby league, they saved the best until last as these two went wild at St James’ Park.
Ellis Longstaff scored twice in seven second-half minutes on his Hull FC debut after joining on loan from Warrington Wolves and somehow Mikey Lewis ended up on the losing side after scoring one of the most incredible hat-tricks you will ever see. The resilience, the fight, the spirit from both sides - this was a simply exceptional game of rugby league.
Luke Gale converted an early penalty for Hull FC but KR bit back after a video review. Matt Parcell bagged his fourth Super League try of the season as the Australian fought his way through two tackles and managed to touch the ball down with one hand on the whitewash.
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He’s a man who has won a Grand Final before and showed all of his ability to put KR in front, even if the conversion was missed. Although the black and whites enjoyed a decent start, they were on the right side of two forward pass decisions that ruled out two further KR tries in the first half.
Hull FC then responded through Connor Wynne as he used his huge strength to steamroll over MIlls and put the ball down in the corner. He’s got five tries now this season and despite being under pressure, they found themselves back in front in a raucous atmosphere. Luke Gale added the extras to make it 8-4.
Frankie Halton, who has been a bright spark this season, suffered a broken collarbone and was taken off, which will be a long-term concern for KR. The senior players in the Hull side were making huge carries with the ball which was dragging Brett Hodgson’s team forward as they controlled the field position and territory.
They made that field position count with another try as Joe Lovodua bagged his fifth try after a wonderful one-two split the KR defence apart. He’s been in great form this term and the fans in the stands went wild as they grabbed a ten-point lead after two tries in seven minutes.
Just as Hull FC looked to be getting away with it, Sam Wood struck to drag the Reds back into proceedings. It was a flowing move outside that gave Wood some space, and he took full advantage to cross.
Lewis, who was only 21 last week, then came up with a piece of individual magic as the hooter went. He kicked the ball through and got on the end of his own kick to cross and drag Hull KR back level in this topsy-turvy match. The missed conversion meant that Danny McGuire’s men went in level with Hull FC at 14-14. It had drama, it had action. It was anyone’s game.
48 seconds into the second half, Longstaff, just 20, scored in the corner to put Hull back in front. He showed great pace on the wing and in the stadium where his namesake Sean plays in the Premier League, he made some headlines of his own. A couple of minutes later he finished another try after a perfectly weighted kick.
It’s only a three-week loan from Warrington Wolves, but what a move this has turned out to be for Hull FC. If this is all he ever does for the club, he will still always be remembered.
But if the first half taught us anything, this game was far from over. KR fought back with a try through German Jimmy Keinhorst, who wriggled his way over the line to bring the score to 26-18.
Brad Fash was sin binned after a dangerous challenge and immediately Lewis made them pay. After a moment of magic in the first half, he shimmered and shuffled his way past two defenders to get over the line. This was almost a one-man show for Hull KR and the score was back to 26-24.
Lewis - that man again - then scored an exceptional hat-trick as he burst through to score an incredible try that saw him complete a historic hat-trick. His last hat-trick came for Newcastle, but this time he produced his best stuff for the derby. It was the first Magic hat-trick since Kieron Moss scored one for KR in 2018 in the same fixture.
If Lewis thought he had done enough to ward off Hull FC, then he was mistaken. John Simm was released on the left and finished to restore their lead. He was another loan debutant that got on the scoresheet which is testament to the fine work that Hodgson has done recently. The conversion gave Hull FC a 32-28 lead heading into the final ten minutes.
KR were denied a try as Minchella appeared to lose control of the ball as he grounded it under pressure from Longstaff. Then a late penalty for the Black and Whites extended their lead to six points.
On Magic Weekend, there was one stand-out magician and he flummoxed Hull FC with a mesmerising hat-trick, but somehow, he ended up on the losing side. Instead, it was a story of the debutants at St James’ Park as Hull FC take the bragging rights back to the east coast.
