Tony Smith enthused by Hull FC "pride" as winless Wakefield crumble again
Jake Clifford pulled the strings again as Hull eased to a third straight win and left stricken Wakefield deeper in the mire.
The Aussie scrum-half was influential as Tony Smith’s side brought down leaders Wigan last week. And he dictated once more as tries from Adam Swift, Carlos Tuimavave and Liam Sutcliffe saw Hull build up an unassailable 20-0 advantage before impressive veteran prop Scott Taylor rounded things off. How winless Wakefield - stuck bottom after suffering 12 straight defeats - could do with someone of his craft.
They had numerous chances to create something in the first half but didn’t turn any of their pressure into points. At least beleagured coach Mark Applegarth didn’t have to witness his side get nilled for a sixth time in this horrid campaign. But he did have to wait until the 67th minute for skipper Matty Ashurst to plough over, Will Dagger improving, by which time another game was dead and buried.
Hull had suffered their own seven-game losing run before this turnaround and Smith enthused: “Our guys are trying really, really hard. You can see their desire: they want to be proud of their badge. Wakefield threw a lot of stuff at us - they’re no easy beats - and we kept turning up.
“I loved the commitment to each other. They covered for each other, turned up and showed real pride. I didn’t see that earlier in the season. It becomes contagious. They don’t want to let each other down.”
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Applegarth must have wished he’d thrown ex-England scrum-half Luke Gale in for his debut here. They’ve recruited the veteran from part-timers Keighley but the coach stuck with Morgan Smith. And the former Man of Steel can’t even make his bow against Leigh in the Challenge Cup next Friday as he’s cup-tied.
But even Gale in his 2017 pomp might struggle to rescue Trinity from relegation. Wakefield got close numerous times in the first half but just couldn’t apply the finish. It’s been the sorry tale of a season that’s threatening to turn into disaster. Instead, Hull took the lead through Adam Swift in the 19th minute after a bizarre passage of play. Wakefield centre Lee Gaskell conceded three penalties in barely 30 seconds to give the visitors the chance.
The ex-St Helens schemer illegally dragged a player into touch, was then pinged for interference before being marched another ten metres for dissent. Clifford made the most of the gifts, picking out a brilliant long pass for winger Swift to acrobatically dive in. Clifford added the first of his five kicks and they were up and running.
Hull's Adam Swift scores his side's opener (James Heaton/News Images) (James Heaton/News Images)Smith’s side doubled their lead in 47th minute when Brad Dwyer’s electric break and some abysmal defending saw captain Tuimavave over. Clifford added a penalty and then converted when classy Sutcliffe slipped through for his sixth try of the season. Ashurst responded but outstanding ex-England prop Taylor had the last word, barging over in the 78th minute.
Wakefield also lost Ashurst, Jay Pitts and Samisoni Langi to injuries but gutted Applegarth bemoaned: “I feel like a broken record. It’s frustrating. We talked about composure and tiring their middles out. We did the complete opposite. I thought this would be the game where we put lessons into practice but we came up short.”
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