Hull KR a Shaw fire success
McGUIRE & ATKIN STAR AS RYAN WALKS TALL IN LAND OF GIANTS
Huddersfield 6 Hull KR 38
MASTER and apprentice Danny McGuire and Chris Atkin steered impressive Hull KR to just their second win of the season.
Veteran McGuire and new England Knight Atkin provided a vastly superior kicking game to their opponents and some shrewd touches with ball in hand, in an accomplished, all-round performance.
Eight-time Grand Final winner McGuire is starting to show exactly why the promoted Robins pushed so hard to secure his signature from Leeds.
And Atkin – who just eight months ago was playing part-time rugby with Swinton – continued his progression with another assured display.
With centre Andrew Heffernan shining out wide and prop Robbie Mulhern providing one of the highlights of the season in the second, Rovers produced their best performance since returning to Super League.
It hadn’t looked like unfolding that way in the opening stages, with Danny Brough laying on a try for Oliver Roberts as the home side dominated.
But two moments of Heffernan magic, in the space of three minutes, swung the contest in the visitors’ favour. First, he finished off a smart set-play from a penalty by beating three Giants defenders to touch down.
In the next set, the Australian centre then got on the outside of Brough to send full-back Adam Quinlan racing under the posts.
Two Ryan Shaw conversions and a penalty put the Robins 14-6 before the winger touched down himself from Quinlan’s intelligent kick.
That gave Tim Sheens’ side a three-score lead they never looked likely to relinquish, with Huddersfield’s attack toothless and predictable. After 23 scoreless second-half minutes, it took a memorable piece of play from front-rower Mulhern to extend their lead.
The big prop collected a Jordan Rankin kick near his own line and sprinted 80 metres, brushing off Brough on the way.
When Jermaine McGillvary eventually got across to cover, Mulhern regained his feet to put James Greenwood over the line.
Quinlan and Heffernan then combined to put Shaw away for his second before McGuire capped a superb display with a late effort.