Hull FC 4-54 Leigh Leopards
Leopards recorded their first Betfred Super League win of the season in emphatic style at their ‘lucky’ ground and set two new club records along the way.
Having recorded the club’s first-ever away Super League win here in 2017, Leopards were victorious again at the MKM Stadium last season and so approached this game confident of kick-starting their season.
But few could have predicted such a runaway win, especially for a side lacking captain John Asiata, Lachlan Lam, Edwin Ipape, Tom Briscoe and Tom Amone, all on the injured list.
Australian star Matt Moylan gave a masterclass of halfback play on his way to a 22-point personal haul which included nine consecutive successful kicks.
Ben McNamara made a triumphant return to his home city and the club he left last autumn, marking a hugely impressive debut – and a fine pairing with Moylan- with the fifth of the Leopards’ nine tries.
Ricky Leutele and Oliver Holmes were other stand-outs and each scored two tries, Holmes’s first which opened the second half scoring the 50th of his senior career.
Wingers Umyla Hanley and Josh Charnley got the ball rolling with superb early tries and England international Robbie Mulhearn marked his first game as captain with another.
The 54-4 victory was Leigh’s highest in a Super League match. The previous record was 50-34 v Wigan in 2017, the previous highest winning margin 32-0 at Wakefield in 2023.
The result also equalled the club’s record away score in a top flight match- and bettered the winning margin.
That was established 37 years ago when Leigh won 54-12 at Oldham in a first division match in April 1987.
Hanley got the Leopards off to the perfect start, after first setting up the position by bundling Hull’s debutant winger Liam Tindall into touch from the first of Moylan’s many decisive tactical kicks.
Charnley then finished in trademark spectacular style on the opposite flank, Moylan kicking the first of his mighty goal haul.
Hull responded when the dangerous Tex Hoy joined the attacking line to cross down the right. But the visitors were soon back in the ascendancy, revelling in the wide-open spaces and playing on the front foot.
Leutele, so powerful and impossible to stop at times, completed a brilliant team move before Brad Dwyer- again so impressive in his third match on loan and like McNamara, playing against his former club- provided the assist for Mulhern to rampage over.
When McNamara steamed onto Leutele’s pass after Kai O’Donnell was held up just short the game was rapidly slipping out of Hull’s reach, their supporters shell-shocked by the scoreline.
Hull’s problems intensified just before half-time when Franklin Pele was sin- binned for a late challenge and Moylan’s penalty sent Leopards in with a 30-4 advantage.
Holmes put weeks of frustration behind him, after missing the start of the season through injury, with a strong running display off the bench, his two quick fire tries ending any unlikely hopes of a home comeback. Both were the result of smart finishing and support play to back up great go-forward by the rampant Leopards.
With referee Aaron Moore enabling the fast pace of the game to continue with a refreshing display of skilled officiating, Leopards continued to dominate.
Moylan’s try was the least his personal efforts deserved and followed on the back of brilliant work by Leutele and Hanley down the middle.
Leutele saw Leigh to the half century mark for only the second time in Super League. His second try sealed his dominant personal performance and chalked up another Moylan assist. Moylan’s ninth goal completed a one-sided second half as you’ll see at this level.
Saturday 16th March 2024 at MKM Stadium, Hull (3pm)
Hull FC: 1 Tex Hoy; 5 Darnell McIntosh, 3 Carlos Tuimavave, 4 Liam Sutcliffe, 2 Liam Tindall; 19 Morgan Smith, 7 Fa’amanu Brown; 8 Herman Ese’ese, 9 Danny Houghton (capt), 12 Ligi Sao, 11 Jayden Okunbor, 24 Nick Staveley, 15 Jordan Lane.
Bench: 10 Franklin Pele, 17 Cam Scott, 20 Jack Brown, 21 Will Gardiner.
18th man: 40 Jack Charles (not used)
Try: Hoy (11)
Goals: Hoy 0/1
Sin bin: Pele (40)
Leopards: 1 Gareth O’Brien; 24 Umyla Hanley, 3 Zak Hardaker, 4 Ricky Leutele, 5 Josh Charnley; 6 Matt Moylan, 21 Ben McNamara; 14 Dan Norman, 33 Brad Dwyer, 10 Robbie Mulhern (capt), 11 Kai O’Donnell, 16 Frankie Halton, Jack Hughes.
Bench: 17 Owen Trout, 18 Ben Nakubuwai, 20 Oliver Holmes, 15 Matt Davis.
18th man: Ed Chamberlain (not used)
Tries: Hanley (4), Charnley (7), Leutele (14, 74), Mulhern (18), McNamara (29), Holmes (49, 53), Moylan (65)
Goals: Moylan 9/ 10
Debut: Ben McNamara (HN#1560)
Scores: 0-4, 0-10, 4-10, 4-16, 4-22, 4-28, 4-30 (ht) 4-36, 4-42, 4-48, 4-54
Half-time: 4-30
Attendance: 10,227
Penalty count: 1-4
Referee: Aaron Moore; Touch-judges: G Jones & J Roberts; Video referee: Jack Smith
