HULL’S DERBY... IN ST HELENS
City rivals prepare to do battle - but only after making 230- mile round trip
IT WOULD be easy to think it might be hard creating the usual intensity, passion and sheer heat of a Hull derby when playing behind closed doors but Andy Last begs to differ.
The interim Black and Whites chief knows a thing or two about this historic fixture having been a fan, player and assistant coach for it during his long association with the East Yorkshire club.
Rarely would he imagine taking charge of his first derby meeting, though, in an empty stadium in St Helens.
Yet, such is 2020 and thankfully - despite the inevitable late Covid concerns - it goes ahead in all of its weirdness.
As for that lack of input from fanatical supporters, such a big part of the tradition here, Last says his improving players - looking for a fourth win in five outings - will make sure they make up for their absence.
“Building the game up is something you don’t want to do too much,” he warned.
“I’ve put a lid on that, in terms of the emotional side of things, in the team run today.
“You’ve got a lot of derbies - that can be won or lost - and you get the odd comment ‘ they wanted it more than us’.
“I don’t feel that’s been the case the last three or four years.
“I feel it’s the team that settles into the style of play they want to play, and get that momentum, which is the most important part of the derby now.
“We’ll make sure they’re ready to play; the players will generate the atmosphere and the emotion.
“We have plenty of local boys in there.
“That was a big thing when it came to the team selection; local boys will be a little bit more at the front of your thinking as they know how important it is to play with that pride and passion and how important it is.
“I am really excited. It’s a great opportunity to try and continue the last three or four weeks in terms of performance but we also understand it’s a dangerous game; form goes out of the window when it comes to derbies.
“We’re expecting the best of Hull KR.”
Rovers, indeed, have lost eight of their last nine games and were eviscerated by Wakefield Trinity - their rivals at the foot of the table - on Sunday.
Last, of course, knows it could also be his only derby meeting in charge.
Although he wants the head coach’s role on a permanent basis, having stepped up to replace the sacked Lee Radford in March, Hull are exploring other options, too.
Salford Red Devils coach Ian Watson revealed on Monday that he had been sounded out by Hull owner Adam Pearson but was not taking up the option of taking the role in 2021.
Asked if he can block that ongoing noise out in the background, Hull- born Last said: “Yes, I can.
“What happens here is the team is getting a coach who is fully committed to the job that he’s got, the players have bought into what I’m asking them and the performances have certainly started to improve.
“I can’t control what the club and the owner and the CEO are thinking in regards to the head coach position.
“They’re entitled to do what they’ve done and they informed me that they were going to be taking applications and enquiries which I think is the right thing from the club’s point of view.
“I’ve made it clear to them that I want the job and I’m just going to continue working as hard as I can and hope that performances and how the players respond and the way I go about business will serve me well as and when those decisions are made.”
To come home with a wet sail in their final four games could certainly push Pearson back towards looking closer to home.
On his memories of the fixture growing up, the 39- year- old recalled: “A really big one for me was when I’d just come on the books at Hull as a scholarship player.
“There’d not been a derby for numerous years and both teams were in the first division.
“I think it was Hull Sharks at the time and it was people like Mark Hewitt and Rob Wilson, while Tevita ( Vaikona) was playing and Stanley ( Gene).
“There was 13,000 at the Boulevard and it was one of those moments where I thought it was a bit of a throwback; the ground packed, a glorious sunshine day, two teams who’d not played against each other for a while and it was a real special game - and we came out of it on the right side of the result.”
To try and make sure they do the same tonight, Last has tried to keep his preparations “very much technical and tactical” and, with that in mind, he has opted to retain Jake Connor at stand- off.
With Jamie Shaul with a ruptured ACL, he could have switched him to full- back but, given Connor’s improving partnership with Marc Sneyd, Josh Griffin will instead move to No1.
Last is also set to keep Manu Ma’u and Andre Savelio as his second- row pairing which left Jordan Lane - one of those local youngsters who has excelled this term - “disappointed” having proved his fitness in time after suffering Covid.
It is a big call. But Last is getting used to making them.
The players will generate the atmosphere and emotion. Hull FC coach Andy Last on tackling the absence of fans for the Hull derby.