Round 6
Hull FC 18 l. Castleford Tigers 19

2009 engage English Super League Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

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

Shifty Sherwin the difference as Tigers end Hull FC's winning run
Sat March 21, 2009
Source: www.superleague.co.uk

Brent Sherwin's 77th-minute drop goal brought Hull FC's perfect start to the new season to an abrupt end as Castleford Tigers turned the form book upside down at the KC Stadium.

Richard Agar's side appeared to be on course for a sixth win in six matches after four tries shared between the Horne brothers Richard and Graeme had given them an 18-12 lead.

But with the usually reliable Danny Tickle failing with three of his four conversion attempts, Castleford were never out of the game and Ryan McGoldrick's try, coupled with Sherwin's drop goal, earned them the win.

It was credit to Terry Matterson's men that they secured a fourth win of the campaign but Agar will surely look upon this as two points dropped in his side's bid to banish the memories of their awful season in 2008, when they finished second bottom, one place above Castleford.

Having won at Bradford for just the second time in the Super League era last weekend, Hull started brightly with a try in the opening minute from Richard Horne but were soon pegged back and only led at the interval after a score from Graeme Horne.

All three tries in an enterprising first half came from errors fielding high kicks and Richard Horne was the first to capitalise.

Ex-Hull winger Kirk Dixon made a mess of taking in Chris Thorman's bomb and in the ensuing melee, Richard Horne reacted the quickest to poach his fifth try of the year on his 250th appearance for the club.

Tickle converted but Dixon was soon able to make amends with a six-point haul after taking in a James Evans pass to ground in the corner after Craig Hall had flapped at Rangi Chase's towering punt. Dixon converted from the touchline.

Hull's ball retention belied their league position and they were lucky to be level after Michael Shenton failed to hold the ball with the line at his mercy after McGoldrick crafted an opening for him.

Hull capitalised on their good fortune and went back in front on 20 minutes.

Richard Owen was the culprit under a high ball this time, failing to clean up another Thorman kick, with Graeme Horne on hand to kick ahead to score.

Tickle's failed goal and Hall's failure to make the most of an empty field ahead of him meant Hull went in at the break with a fragile 10-6 lead.

That advantage was shattered soon after the interval as a combination of Joe Westerman's try and Dixon's goal snuck the visitors ahead for the first time.

Westerman's third try of the season, five minutes after the restart, came off a fine flat pass from Chase, but Castleford's lead only lasted four minutes as Hull struck back.

Graeme Horne was the scorer again, although he did need two attempts to touch down under the attentions of Shenton.

Tickle hit the top of the post with his conversion but it did not seem to matter when the younger Horne secured his hat-trick two days shy of his 24th birthday after good work from Shaun Berrigan.

But with Tickle again failing to convert the scores were left at 18-12 and that was quickly addressed as McGoldrick ran in on an angle to score for the visitors, with a third Dixon goal levelling the scores.

Richard Horne then failed with a 67th-minute drop goal, as did Sherwin five minutes later, before the wily Australian found his aim three minutes from time.


Airlie News: Hull FC v Castleford
Fri March 20, 2009
Source: www.hullfc.com

Hull FC's victory over Bradford Bulls has ensured Richard Agar's men of the best-ever start in the clubs engage Super League history.

It was only their second win at the Grattan Stadium in the Super League era but it has put them within two wins of their best start to a campaign for almost 30 years.

Hull made it five wins in a row when they beat the Bulls 36-24 and that victory has edged them closer to the seven straight wins their achieved in the 1990-91.

This was the season, which saw Hull defy the odds and beat star-studded Widnes 14-4 in the Premiership Final at Old Trafford.

Hull won their opening seven games before losing 22-6 to Wakefield Trinity at Belle Vue on November 4th.

The clubs best opening to a Super League campaign came in 2001 when they were unbeaten in their opening five games, winning four and drawing 18-18 against tomorrows visitors to the KC Stadium Castleford.

Hull's first loss that season came in an exciting 38-34 defeat against St Helens at Knowsley Road.

During Hull's promotion season to the Super League in 1997, Hull went 17 games unbeaten. They won 16 and drew in their fourth game 20-20 in Cumbria against Whitehaven ? a game that saw Australian Glenn Liddiard sent off after the match had finished.

All that will be put aside tomorrow night when Hull come face to face with in form Castleford Tigers at the KC Stadium (8pm).

This is a big challenge for Agar's men and the Hull coach is fully aware of the threat posed by Super League's leading points scorers.

As Agar pointed out, "Castleford like to promote the ball and have a lot of attacking options. Unless your defence is spot on they will cause you plenty of problems.

"Sione (Faumuina) likes to promote the ball, Sherwin and Chase are both dangerous players and McGoldrick has been a revelation at full back so when you look down the likely starting 17 for them you know they have got a lot of players who like to play with the ball in their hands.

"The points for and against in Super League backs that up because they are the leading scorers in the competition going into this weekends round.

"That tells you that defensively our concentration has to be spot on from the start to the finish. We can't afford lapses because we know if we do have a lapse they are more than capable of capitalising on it.

"On the other side I think the last couple of weeks have shown that we're getting better with the football.

"I felt our performance at Bradford was the best we have played with the ball all season and I'll be hoping that continues tomorrow.

"Castleford have probably been the biggest benefactors of the franchise system this year because they were able to invest and keep their talented youngsters who might easily have moved on had they been relegated.

"They not only kept them but they also kept their better overseas players and they were able to go out and make some other shrewd signings. The combined result is that it has made Castleford a better side this season as we're currently seeing.

As much as Castleford are a threat, Agar made no secret of the fact he and his players will be concentrating on their own performances.

He added: "We have said it every week so far that the important thing for us is to concentrate on our performance and fully focus on that. We'll look at being sound defensively in our systems and keep building on what we have been doing offensively.

"We will pay due respect to Castleford and their playmakers because if you don't they will hurt you but it is about what we do and the quality of our performance which is the key."

Despite Hull's excellent start, Agar said: "We are not going to get too far ahead of ourselves. We have said from day one that we'll take each game as it comes because we're not that good a side yet.

"Everything that we want to achieve and have achieved we have had to work for and we will continue along that path. If you start getting ahead of yourself and start thinking you can turn up without proper preparation and due respect of your opposition then that is when you will get burned.

"We have seen it a million times and we're not in that position. We know the competition is tight and you have to earn everything."

HULL FC 19-MAN SQUAD: Craig Hall, Mark Calderwood, Graeme Horne, Kirk Yeaman, Tom Briscoe, Richard Horne, Chris Thorman, Ewan Dowes, Shaun Berrigan, Peter Cusack, Danny Tickle, Willie Manu, Lee Radford, Danny Houghton, Jamie Thackray, Tommy Lee, Sam Moa, Danny Washbrook, Dominic Maloney.

SUPER LEAGUE RECORD AGAINST CASTLEFORD TIGERS:
Home: played 10, won 7, drawn 1, lost 2, for 238, against 144
Away: played 10, won 4, drawn 1, lost 5, for 256, against 237
Total: played 20, won 11, drawn 2, lost 7, for 494, against 381

MILESTONES:
Kirk Yeaman needs four tries to reach 100 with Hull FC

Richard Horne will make his 250th start for Hull FC tonight.

Danny Tickle's six goals against Bradford Bulls took his total points for Hull to 500

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