Round 6
Hull FC 24 d. St Helens 12

2007 engage English Super League Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

Location: United Kingdom > National > First Grade Competition: engage English Super League

Hull FC upset St Helens
Mon March 19, 2007
Source: www.superleague.co.uk

Hull FC continued their steady improvement this season with a fine victory over St Helens at the KC Stadium in a re-run of last season's Grand Final.

Daniel Anderson's Saints side - 46-0 victors on this ground a year ago - claimed the engage Super League crown in 2006 with a 26-4 win over Peter Sharp's men at Old Trafford.

Since then Saints have gone on to claim the Carnegie World Club Championship, while Hull - through a combination of poor form and injuries to key players - have struggled and only posted their first win of the season last weekend.

However, some outstanding defence and a much-improved offensive performance allowed Sharp's side to take the points and consign the champions to their third defeat this campaign.

Of equal significance to Sharp will be the performance of 19-year-old half-back Thomas Lee.

Hull have struggled for creativity all season in the absence of injured playmaker Paul Cooke but Lee's performance, most notably the setting up of second-half tries for Kirk Yeaman and Shaun Briscoe, was one to behold.

With captain Paul Sculthorpe making a second comeback of the season from injury off the bench, the visitors began shyly and struggled to find any early rhythm.

Two Danny Tickle penalties saw them slip four points behind while, promisingly for Hull, the kicking game of Richard Horne and Lee was much improved on what it has been.

James Graham, courtesy of a short pass from Leon Pryce, was able to barge over for the game's opening try after 20 minutes and, although Steve Tyrer's conversion put St Helens ahead, the first half belonged to the home side.

Sharp instructed his side to kick their close-range penalties for goal while, typically, opposite number Anderson encouraged his men to run the ball.

However, their flamboyance soon became their downfall as Matt Gidley and Ade Gardner combined to waste an opportunity on the right with Hull lacking in defensive numbers.

Also of note was the performance of Hull's pack, which outplayed St Helens' forward six despite missing Great Britain international Garreth Carvell through injury. Hutch Maiava, seemingly putting his early-season woes behind him, was a key contributor.

Hull then posted their first try, a sublime effort from Sid Domic, which allowed them to go in 10-6 ahead at the break.

Domic and wing partner Matt Sing combined superbly down the right and Sing, courtesy of a superb one-handed pickup, was able to send Domic charging over the line.

Tickle converted from out wide and slotted another goal after the restart courtesy of another penalty.

Then, with Pryce sent to the sin bin for holding down Yeaman, Hull struck with two tries in quick succession to secure the win.

First, Lee's bullet pass allowed Briscoe to send Yeaman thundering over the line for his first try of a so-far barren season, before Lee slipped through the Saints line and held the ball for long enough to allow the onrushing Briscoe to dive over to the left of the posts.

Lee Gilmour - the unfortunate second party in an incident that saw Richard Swain out cold for a short time - then nearly sparked a comeback only to be held up by Wayne Godwin just short of the line, although a further Tickle penalty had already nosed Hull 18 points ahead.

The ever-willing Paul Wellens posted a consolation for the visitors but it was to no avail.

Hull FC (10) 24
Tries: Domic, Yeaman, Briscoe
Goals: Tickle 6

St Helens (6) 12
Tries: Graham, Wellens
Goals: Tyrer 2

Hull FC: Briscoe, Sing, Domic, Yeaman, Raynor, Lee, R. Horne, Dowes, Swain, King, Radford, Tickle, Washbrook.
Replacements: Tony, Manu, Godwin, Maiava.

St Helens: Wellens, Gardner, Gidley, Tyrer, Meli, Pryce, Long, Fozzard, Cunningham, Cayless, Gilmour, Bennett, Wilkin.
Replacements: Roby, Graham, Fa'asavalu, Sculthorpe.

Att: 12,678
Referee: R Silverwood

Report source: www.superleague.co.uk

Article: Sharp: We can get better


Manu on a mission as Hull FC face Saints
Sat March 17, 2007
Source: www.hullfc.com

Willie Manu insists that occasions like Saturday evening were a key part in him joining Hull FC.

The 26-year-old Tongan back row forward turned down several NRL offers to join The Airlie Birds in the off-season.

On Saturday night Manu will be involved as the Black and Whites renew acquaintances with St Helens for the first time since the 2006 Grand Final.

He explained: "These are the kinds of occasions that I thought about when joining Hull, when I saw the crowd on television for the big games it did cross my mind what that would be like to be part of.

"St Helens are a quality side, but so are Hull. Last season the boys beat every side along the way to the Grand Final and I'm still really excited about our chance this season. Nothing is won this early, particularly the way Super League is this year."

The former Souths, St George-Illawarra and Castleford player missed the start of Super League XII with a broken nose and is targeting more game time in the coming rounds.

"I broke my nose in pre-season and when they told me I couldn't play for a month I was really frustrated. It was the first time I've broken it, so I'm still well behind some of the boys.

"In my own mind I wanted to play, but you have to follow the advice of the specialists, otherwise I could have made it a whole lot worse.

"I've been working hard at training and I'm hitting my targets so I should be progressing all the time and taking that onto the field."

Manu, who is famed in Australia for his 'home job' hairstyles, once dyed his hair red and green before an NRL match. However he insists he won't be taking to the field with any unusual haircuts this season. "I tried a few things in the past, mainly at home. It's going to style black this season though."

One-to-One with Peter Sharp (Hull FC Head Coach)

What are your thoughts on facing St Helens on Saturday?

This is a game we have all been looking forward to, particularly in front of our own fans. It's an opportunity for the players to test themselves against a high quality side in fine form.

We will need to be on our toes to deal with Saints, they can hurt you all over the field. I was at the Reebok Stadium when St Helens beat Brisbane Broncos and I have to say they thoroughly deserved it, the Broncos came and gave it a real go, but Saints were the better side on the night.

How crucial was the win over Huddersfield last week?

It was important we got back on track at The Galpharm Stadium last week and it will do the players' confidence the world of good. I think we have to look into the reasons why the opposition always seem to score the first and the last tries in most of our games. We need to be alert for the full 80 minutes, particularly from the kick off.

It was a tough game of footie and not very pretty either, but we got the win. Huddersfield didn't get much credit for last weekend's game, but I think they played some good stuff and we needed to be excellent in defence to keep them out.

Did the camp feel under any pressure before that game?

I've been continually asked about pressure recently, but that's part and parcel of the game. After last season everyone expected us to start off flying, but a combination of elements has slowed our process slightly, but I still believe we are going in the right direction.

The difficult thing to do under pressure is to enjoy yourself and response positively rather than be afraid, this was one of the messages we tried to get across. Communication is also something we are looking to improve, both on the field and in training. The players are talking more and as we gel and find the fluency we will be able to play off the cuff a little more.

Have you been lacking in confidence lately?

It's difficult to stay confident when the results are going you're way, but the most important thing is that the lads have kept trying and chipping away. We haven't lacked desire, just a bit of rhythm.

Next Game at the KC Stadium
Hull FC v St Helens
Saturday March 17th
Kick Off 6pm

Hull FC 18 man squad to face St Helens

Shaun Briscoe
Sid Domic
Ewan Dowes
Wayne Godwin
Graeme Horne
Richard Horne
Paul King
Thomas Lee
Hutch Maiava
Willie Manu
Lee Radford
Gareth Raynor
Matt Sing
Richard Swain
Danny Tickle
Motu Tony
Danny Washbrook
Kirk Yeaman

Injured:
Shayne McMenemy (Flu)
Paul Cooke (Hamstring)
Garreth Carvell (Elbow & Hand)

News sent by: www.hullfc.com

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