Wigan Warriors just held off a fast-finishing Hull FC team of youngsters to secure a vital 30-24 victory tonight at the DW Stadium.
Wigan took an 18-point lead in the first 30 minutes.
Oliver Gildart opened the scoring with a try nicely created by George Williams and John Bateman, and Josh Charnley touched down for the second after a great flicked offload by Anthony Gelling.
Their third try came from Bateman under the posts, with Ryan Hampshire converting all three tries.
But in the final ten minutes of the first half Hull fought back, with Jamie Shaul running the length of the field after Gildart dropped the ball near the Hull line.
And they scored six more when Jack Logan showed great footwork to beat Matty Smith and Hampshire to score, with Marc Sneyd goaling both tries for an 18-12 interval scoreline.
Wigan extended their lead with a Ben Flower try on 60 minutes, with Hampshire converting and adding a penalty for a 26-12 lead.
But the young Hull team came storming back when Jordan Rankin touched down a superb cross-field kick from Sneyd, and Logan then scored his second when he beat Charnley to pick up a Danny Houghton grubber to the touchline. Sneyd converted both tries to reduce the margin to two points.
Taulima Tautai was then given a yellow card for a dangerous tackle on Mickey Paea, but Hull couldn’t convert their one-man advantage into a victory, and Joe Burgess touched down in the final minute to seal a 30-24 victory for Wigan.
A full report, photos and analysis will feature in Monday’s edition of League Express.
