Hull did their engage Super League play-off ambitions a power of good with a tense if far from comfortable victory over a resilient Harlequins side at the KC Stadium.
With a game in hand on their fifth-placed visitors, and despite a maddeningly inconsistent season so far, the win moved Hull to within two points of the top six. Yet it hardly looked so promising at the start.
On another wet and slippery evening in Hull, Thomas Lee, the home scrum-half, surrendered the field position from which Harlequins built the game’s first score, when he knocked on ten metres from his own line.
From the scrum, the ball was worked out to Tyrone Smith, the centre, who fended away Craig Hall, his youthful opposite number, with a mammoth hand-off before sauntering over out wide in the 11th minute.
When Paul Sykes added the conversion and a penalty goal, Harlequins looked to be well in control. Hull, though, began to dominate first-half possession. They dragged their way level at the break, thanks to four penalty goals from Danny Tickle, the loose forward, as a solid if indisciplined Harlequins defence conceded five infringements in succession.
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Even allowing for the greasy conditions, with Harlequins permanently on the back foot, taking the two-point route appeared to be an overly conservative philosophy. But when a sweeping upfield break ended with Richard Horne, the stand-off, pushing his side in front for the first time on 55 minutes, it looked more like a case of admirable patience.
With Tickle temporarily off the field, it was Hall who tagged on the extras. The young centre increased the lead when he intercepted a loose pass by Scott Hill to romp over unopposed before Tickle, this time, added the game’s final conversion.
Scorers: Hull: Tries: Horne, Hall. Goals: Tickle 5, Hall. Harlequins: Tries: Smith Goals: Sykes 2
Hull: M Tony; M Sing, C Hall, K Yeaman, G Raynor; R Horne, T Lee; E Dowes, D Washbrook, P King, L Radford, W Manu, D Tickle. Substitutes: S Wheeldon, R Whiting, H Maiava, D Houghton.
Harlequins: M McLinden; J Wells, P Sykes, T Smith, R Sheriffe; D Orr, S Hill; K Temata, C Randall, D Mills, M Gafa, L Hopkins, H Paul. Substitutes: J Rinaldi, J Mbu, J Grayshon, L McCarthy-Scarsbrook.
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Referee: A Klein.