Warrington Wolves 6
Hull Kingston Rovers 8
by James Chestney at Wembley Stadium
The current Super League Man of Steel Mikey Lewis needed nerves of steel to land the conversion to a late Tom Davies try to seal Hull Kingston Rovers’ first Rugby League Challenge Cup final win in 45 years.
It had been a long time coming – but they left it late.
They saved their worst performance of the season so far for the biggest stage, but when referee Liam Moore sent Davies’s last-minute touchdown upstairs as a try, 20,000 Rovers fans held their breath. Video referee Jack Smith reviewed it, and when the big screen flashed ‘TRY’, it was Lewis who sent the fans into delirium when his kick sailed between the posts and victory was theirs.
Willie Peters made what some may have seen as a gamble, starting Mickey McIlorum at hooker despite him having been injured since 11 April, with Jez Litten moved to the bench. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves returned from suspension, and Dean Hadley was also back after being rested with a calf strain.
Jack Broadbent moved to full-back, with James Batchelor shifting from the second row into the vacated centre spot. Arthur Mourgue was cup-tied, having played for Catalans Dragons in a previous round, as was Noah Booth who featured for Hunslet.
Warrington were crestfallen – they should have won the game – led by scrum-half Marc Sneyd, who picked up the Lance Todd Trophy for Player of the Match for a record-equalling third time.
Coach Sam Burgess brought back his big names – George Williams after 10 weeks out with an ankle injury, along with Toby King, Lachlan Fitzgibbon and Jordy Crowther – to see the Wolves close to full strength.
Warrington had the first real possession when Waerea-Hargreaves went high on Paul Vaughan. The ball was worked right from Williams to Roderik Tai, but his intended pass to Josh Thewlis sailed into touch as torrential rain fell.
The Wolves thought they had opened the scoring when it appeared Broadbent had lost the ball while being tackled near the Rovers line. Aaron Lindop gathered to ground it, but when checked by the video referee, it was found to have been pulled out by Tai – Rovers were awarded a penalty.
Rovers weren’t at their fluid best, but they were first on the scoreboard after a high shot on Lewis by Ben Currie. The Rovers number six slotted over the penalty with 12 minutes to the half-time break to lead 2-0.
There was a raft of substitutions by both sides, but Rovers couldn’t make their usual inroads into the Wire defence. Warrington, meanwhile, applied pressure through Currie, Williams, Matt Dufty (who ended the game with a fractured eye socket) and Thewlis – but Sneyd’s kick went dead.
There was a chance for Rovers 10 minutes before the break when a high Lewis kick just evaded substitute Kelepi Tanginoa. They pressed again five minutes later when Joe Philbin lost possession under heavy tackling.
But it was Warrington who went in at the break ahead, thanks to a fortuitous try three minutes from half time. A Sneyd bomb was spilled by Joe Burgess, and in the next set, another Sneyd kick rebounded off Litten’s boot and bounced into the path of Thewlis who swooped to score. Sneyd landed the touchline conversion to lead 6-2.
The second half was error-strewn and disjointed. Rovers had three successive sets at the Warrington line but couldn’t capitalise. One move that normally comes off – a Peta Hiku flick to Davies – instead went into touch.
MORE WORDS AND PICTURES IN THIS WEEK’S EDITION
They kept up the pressure, though – a huge 70-metre drop-out from Lewis followed a period of sustained pressure, and Sue then powered to the line. Rovers were given six again, with Tyrone May coming up short.
Just before the hour, Warrington forced a mistake as Sue knocked on – unsuccessfully challenged by Rovers – and the Wolves pressed further with back-to-back goal-line drop-outs after Broadbent and Davies were tackled behind the line.
Sneyd again turned the screw with a superb 40/20, but it was spoiled by a high shot from Ratchford on Davies. The clock was ticking and Rovers’ chances were slipping away.
At half time, the team talk was simple: “If you have to win in the 79th minute, then do it.”
They did.
Rovers got one last chance to attack, and they made it count. May slid a kick behind the defence, and though Lindop looked to have grounded it with his torso, the ball came loose and Davies pounced.
The decision was sent upstairs, and Smith gave the try – to the dismay of coach Burgess. It was later clarified by senior official Chris Kendall that a defending player cannot ground the ball behind his own line with the torso – only the arm or hand counts.
The hooter sounded, and red and white ribbons adorned the Challenge Cup for the first time since 1980, when Roger Millward MBE lifted the famous trophy. This time, it was Elliot Minchella who led the Robins up the Wembley steps to lift it high.
There was plenty of symbolism. Millward’s iconic number six shirt was brought back this season. Both he and Peters were half-backs. Try scorers Davies (2025) and Steve Hubbard (1980) both wore number two.
Perhaps it was meant to be.
One man who deserved his moment was club owner Neil Hudgell – after all he and the board have done to build the club. But without the late former chairman Colin McNicol and his team, who worked so hard to save Hull KR in the early 2000s, this day might never have come.
As he, Millward, Clive Sullivan and Phil Lowe looked down from above, they would all surely agree: “Job’s a guddun.”
It was.
Hull KR: Jack Broadbent, Tom Davies, Peta Hiku, James Batchelor, Joe Burgess, Mikey Lewis, Tyrone May, Sauaso Sue, Michael McIlorum, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, Dean Hadley, Jai Whitbread, Elliot Minchella
Interchange: Jez Litten, Sam Luckley, Kelepi Tanginoa, Jack Brown
18th man: Eribe Doro
Try: Tom Davies (79)
Goals: Mikey Lewis 2/2
Warrington Wolves: Matt Dufty, Josh Thewlis, Toby King, Roderik Tai, Aaron Lindop, George Williams, Marc Sneyd, Luke Yates, Sam Powell, Paul Vaughan, Adam Holroyd, Lachlan Fitzgibbon, Ben Currie
Interchange: James Harrison, Joe Philbin, Jordan Crowther, Stefan Ratchford
18th man: Max Wood
Try: Josh Thewlis (39)
Goal: Marc Sneyd 1/2
Lance Todd Trophy winner: Marc Sneyd (Warrington Wolves)
Gazette Player of the Match: Tyrone May
Attendance: 63,278
Referee: Liam Moore
Penalties: 2-4
Six Again: 0-1
Goal-line drop-outs: 1-4