MATCH DETAILS
Hull FC romped to a 31-point victory over Salford at the KCOM Stadium in spite of a hefty injury list.
Hull front loaded their try scoring endeavour with six in the first half, the first and second of which came from Bureta Faraimo within the first quarter of the game, with Faraimo going the length with an interception for his second.
Hull continued to run rampant and scored through Jack Downs and Jack Logan, before Hakim Miloudi finished off the second interception try of the night. Jake Connor took a pragmatic drop goal towards the end of the half to make the score 31-0 before Jamie Shaul backed up with a try of his own.
The Airlie birds’ intensity seemed to continue their high intensity after the break with Faraimo completing his hat-trick just after the opening 10 minutes.
It was Salford, however, who dominated the rest of the game with Greg Johnson, Darrel Olpherts and George Griffin all scoring consolation tries for the visitors.
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Despite the Salford resurgence, Hull had the last points of the game with a 79th minute penalty from Jake Connor to top off a sensational home win to bounce back from their Challenge Cup defeat the week prior.
WHAT WE’VE LEARNED
No Sneyd? No worries!
The injury-hit Black and Whites were once again without their first choice halve partnership, Sneyd and Kelly, but once again performed expceptionally to beat Salford so comprehensively.
While they clearly are the difference on the big stage, the Black and Whites have managed without the pair at various stages of the season in the league both in attack and in with their kicking game.
This is undoubtedly characterised by Jake Connor’s 8/8 off the tee (Sneyd’s usual duty), which provided a somewhat nonchalant nod to the critics of a Sneyd-less hull.
Super League Salford?
Salford’s 6-match winless run is becoming more than just an out-of-form patch. They now sit 10th in the table, three points away from 8th and are performing increasingly worse every week.
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This year’s side is a far cry from that of the Salford that has pushed for a Top 4 spot in recent years and it looks as though there is a big chance they could be in the Championship next year, especially considering their recent loss to Leigh Centurions – a Championship side.
Man Of The Match- Bureta Faraimo (Hull FC)
Jake Connor came a close second to Faraimo for the Man of The Match honours with a seamless kicking display. The United States international winger, however, matched Connor’s with an explosive hat-trick of tries that came in the 6th, 12th, and 51st minutes of the game.
Whenever he plays he brings excitement to the game with his physical playing style and he undoubtedly provided this time out too. He even spent ten minutes in the sin bin.
THE RESULT
HULL FC 45
Tries: Faraimo (3), Downs, Logan, Miloudi, Shaul
Goals: Connor (8)
Drop Goals: Connor
SALFORD RED DEVILS
Tries: Johnson, Olpherts, Griffin
Goals: Lui
Drop Goals: n/a
SQUADS
TEAM A: Shaul; Faraimo, Logan, Tuimavave, Miloudi; Connor, Harris; Taylor, Washbrook, Green, Downs, Minichiello, Westerman. Interchanges: Fash, Litten, Paea, Matongo.
TEAM B: Littlejohn; Johnson, Welham, Sa’u, Olpherts; Lui, Shorrocks; Tasi, L Tomkins, Mossop, Griffin, Jones, Flanagan. Interchanges: Kopczak, McCarthy, Nakubuwai, Wood.
Referee: Robert Hicks (RFL)
