MAGIC DERBY WIN FOR HULL

HULL FC moved to the top of Super League in ideal fashion with a 28-16 win over arch rivals Hull KR at St James’ Park. The 228th Hull derby brought down the curtain on Magic Weekend and the Black and Whites continued their sensational form since coming from 20-0 down to beat Rovers at Craven Park on Good Friday. Hull had seen fellow leaders Warrington and Catalans beaten despite taking commanding leads and that would have been at the back of their minds after tries from Mahe Fonua and Curtis Naughton either side of Shaun Lunt’s yellow card. Lunt returned from the sin bin to get Rovers back in it and Terry Campese added two penalties to his conversion either side of half-time to bring the Robins level at 10-10. Former Hull player Graeme Horne put Rovers ahead for the first time but the Black and Whites were in control again following tries from Fonua and Jamie Shaul. Mark Minichiello’s converted try completed a fourth successive derby victory for Hull, the longest winning run in the fixture during the Super League era. Hull were rewarded by moving two points clear at the summit. Meanwhile, Wakefield head coach Chris Chester thought Jacob Miller ‘had no chance’ when he lined up a 50-metre drop goal that sealed a thrilling 25-24 win against Catalans. ‘I thought, “What are you doing?”,’ said Chester. ‘I thought he had no chance but he got it through the posts and that just shows the confidence of Milky.’ Huddersfield coach Paul Anderson saw his bold team selections pay off as the Giants hammered St Helens 48-20. Anderson dropped Ryan Brierley for long-serving full back Scott Grix and restored former Saints scrum-half Jamie Ellis. ‘It was probably the most experienced team we’ve had all year,’ he said.