Hull FC produce better account but lack decisive edge to trouble Wigan Warriors

A lot has been made of Hull FC's rising young players this season, and rightly so, but it was Wigan Warriors' latest batch of talent that stole the show, along with an eye-catching display from Australian star Jai Field, in Sunday's 22-4 victory.

The reigning Super League and World Club champions, who moved back level on points with Hull KR at the top of the table, showed they are still the masters when it comes to developing young talent, with four of their rising stars, Jacob Douglas, Zack Eckersley, Junior Nsemba, and Jack Farrimond, all on the scoresheet in what was a hard-fought win against the depleted Black and Whites.

Hull, who, in the words of interim coach Simon Grix, took some steps forward in terms of accountability and ownership this week, did produce a better account. They showed some resilience and were more competitive than the soft nature of recent defeats. Unfortunately, they just didn't have the quality to match Wigan, who did enough to avenge last month's Hull win at the MKM Stadium with a comfortable win.

But the Black and Whites, led by a strong show from Herman Ese'ese and co, can at least hold their heads up high, doing it tough again after losing Jed Cartwright after a nasty clash that drew blood to his face in the first-half, not to mention Ed Chamberlain to a shoulder injury.

Grix, meanwhile, made four changes to his side. Logan Moy returned at full-back, with Will Gardiner, who played big minutes, also coming into the starting line-up. Jack Ashworth and Leon Ruan both came on off the bench.

And while Hull fielded a lot of their youth once again, it was Wigan's club-produced products who shined early on, albeit with one of the best players in the competition, Jai Field, assisting both of their early tries. The Australian's cut-out pass found winger Douglas, who dived over in the right corner, before Eckersley, who ran a strong line off Field's short pass, scored their second try. However, that was as good as it got in the first-half for the home side.

Hull, to their credit, got a foothold, and they hit back through Cartwright, who scored his first try for the club after Lewis Martin broke the play before. The Black and Whites then shipped the ball right, with the back rower crashing over.

Cartwright was then forced off after coming out second-best in a tackle, sporting a fair fit of blood on his nose, with Hull holding their opposition to half-time. And despite the adversity of losing both of their back rowers, it was Grix's side that then came out firing in the second half. They put themselves about, but despite one or two attacking chances coming their way, they couldn't make them count.

On the contrary, Wigan didn't pass their chances by, with Nsemba coming back on the angle to catch a flat-footed Hull defence and crash over. And when Farrimond, impressing in the halves, added Wigan's fourth try of the day, the result was only going one way.

Wigan, who lost Patrick Mago to the sin bin after a high shot, did enough to see the game out, with Hull not throwing the towel in. Another defeat, but in terms of mood and circumstance, a complete contrast to the last three weeks. They host Castleford Tigers next, with four games of the season to go.

Teams

Wigan Starting XIII: 1. Jai Field; 28. Jacob Douglas, 26. Zach Eckersley, 4. Joe Wardle, 5. Liam Marshall; 30. Jack Farrimond, 3. Adam Keighran; 8. Ethan Havard, 17. Kruise Leeming, 16. Luke Thompson; 21. Junior Nsemba, 22. Sam Walters; 15. Patrick Mago

Interchange: 10. Liam Bryne, 19. Tyler Dupree, 20. Harvie Hill, 27. Tom Forber. 18th man: 2. Abbas Miski

Hull Starting XIII: 37. Logan Moy; 25. Harvey Barron, 3. Carlos Tuimavave, 44. Tom Briscoe, 26. Lewis Martin; 19. Morgan Smith, 40. Jack Charles; 8. Herman Ese’ese, 15. Jordan Lane, 21. Will Gardiner; 43. Ed Chamberlain, Jed Cartwright; 45. Yusuf Aydin

Interchange: 13. Brad Fash, 16. Jack Ashworth, 27. Zach Jebson, 51. Leon Ruan. 18th Man: 30. Matty Laidlaw

Scorers

Wigan Tries: Douglas, Eckersley, Nsemba, Farrimond,

Goals: Keighran 3/4

Hull Tries: Cartwright

Goals: Charles 0/1

Scoring System: 4-0, 10-0, 10-4, HT, 16-4, 22-4, FT

Referee: Aaron Moore

Attendance: 12,347