Radford’s focus shifts to Aussie trip

HULL head coach Lee Radford was delighted to secure victory on the opening round of the new Super League season as his focus shifts to a trip to Australia.

The Black and Whites fly Down Under on Friday evening in preparation for the first Super League match to take place outside of Europe when they face Wigan in Wollongong in round two.

And they will be buoyed by a stunning second-half display where they scored 28 unanswered points to earn a convincing 38-12 win over Huddersfield Giants after trailing at the half-time interval.

Radford said: “It was everything I could have asked for.

“We got what we expected from them but when we went set-for-set with them in the second half, I felt we looked really strong.

“We looked sharp. I thought we looked really strong, physically really strong.

“Plus, we got exactly what we asked for and go on the plane with a W. We wanted to take some momentum on the trip.”

Marc Sneyd booted the hosts into a 4-0 lead but quickfire tries from Ryan Hinchcliffe and Umaki Ta’ai put the Giants 12-4 ahead before Albert Kelly crossed to reduce the gap to 12-10 at the break.

However, Fetuli Talanoa grabbed an 18-minute hat-trick while Jake Connor haunted his former side to touch down, Jamie Shaul crossed and Sneyd finished with seven goals in a dominant second 40 minutes.

Radford can now look forward to the lengthy trip to Australia and is determined to turn any negatives into positives.

“This is what we strived for all pre-season - to get on the flight with a W,” the Hull boss added.

“I keep hearing that it’s a hindrance and that we will be physically tested but we can make it a plus.

“I don’t want to train in this tomorrow. I’m sick of it. So get me some sun and put a smile on our face and have a good time. We will get depressed when we get back.

“That’s how I see it. I’m just thinking about Wigan now.”

Radford was excited to see how his side will fare in their two matches in Australia, including their clash with St George Illawarra Dragons in Sydney in a fortnight’s time.

“It’s a big game. We want to go out there and perform really well in both games - against great opposition from Super League and unbelievable opposition from the NRL.

“Looking forward to it. It’s really exciting. It’s going to be intriguing. The way that the NRL and Super League is played are two contrasting styles.

“We are going to go there and have a good time and we are going to play some good footy.”