THE nearly men - again!
A promising season, albeit an unprecedented one in which the club and all its employees need applauding for finishing, had some glowing moments but lacked oomph when it was needed most.
And sadly, despite the mitigating factors surrounding a worldwide pandemic, we’ve been here before.
Picture above by SWpix.com. All other pictures by Mike Boden
It was not through lack of effort or determination, but long-term issues bit them on the backside again in the 27-14 home loss to Hull in this elimination play-off.
The most glaring example was with the ball in hand.
Being unable to prise open a defence at key moments, or be clinical after doing so, is pretty damning for a side brimming with internationally recognised talent.
For some reason, again, things did not fully click together.
In a breathless early period, Warrington had enough possession and created sufficient pressure to have put Hull’s campaign to bed but they failed to do so and paid the price as the visitors’ confidence grew with the game.
The outstanding Joe Philbin, on a rare start, Jason Clark and co-skippers Chris Hill and Jack Hughes led the way in the early stages.
They had a Hull side, also full of quality but so inconsistent, where they wanted them – on the back foot.
But it did not stay that way.
Although they did manage to get their noses in front for four minutes through Anthony Gelling's fine try from a Gareth Widdop kick, they did not seem to react well to a poor video referee decision that robbed them of an earlier Stefan Ratchford try after Marc Sneyd ripped the ball from Jack Hughes’ grasp.
And Hull’s superiority in slowing down the play-the-balls became distracting as well as reducing effectiveness.
This all allowed a motivated Hull FC to gain a foothold, capitalising too on Sneyd’s strong kicking game and some smart plays from full-back Jake Connor whose threat had been highlighted pre-match.
Wire were ball watching when Connor scooted across field from dummy half to create Chris Satae’s try three minutes into the second half and at 19-8 it was always going to be uphill after that.
Matty Ashton’s second try kept The Wire in the hunt and they came so close when Anthony Gelling dribbled a kick for Josh Charnley to score but the ball had nicked the touchline whitewash and the score was ruled out.
With the game hanging in the balance Warrington needed a bit of magic but nothing materialised and Sneyd’s 69th-minute penalty goal took the contest out of reach.
> What Wire head coach Steve Price said about the game
INTERESTING NOTES:
Wire bow out at play-offs first hurdle for second year in a row
Only the second loss to Hull FC in eight matches
Matty Ashton's two tries see him end debut campaign as team's top try scorer
MATCH FACTS:
Round 1 elimination play-off, Thursday, November 12, 2020
Warrington Wolves...14 Hull FC...27
Wolves: Stefan Ratchford; Josh Charnley, Anthony Gelling, Toby King, Matty Ashton; Blake Austin, Gareth Widdop; Chris Hill, Daryl Clark, Joe Philbin, Jack Hughes, Ben Currie, Jason Clark. Subs: Ben Murdoch-Masila, Jake Mamo, Matt Davis. Not used: Ellis Robson
Hull: Jake Connor; Ratu Naulago, Mahe Fonua, Josh Griffin, Bureta Faraimo; Carlos Tuimavave, Marc Sneyd; Scott Taylor, Jordan Johnstone, Josh Bowden, Manu Ma’u, Andre Savelio, Joe Cator. Subs: Danny Houghton, Chris Satae, Ligi Sao, Brad Fash
Scoring: Faraimo try, 20mins, Sneyd goal, 0-6; Ashton try, 25mins, 4-6; Gelling try, 30mins, 8-6; Cator try, 34mins, Sneyd goal, 8-12; Sneyd drop goal, 40mins, 8-13; Satae try, 43mins, Sneyd goal, 8-19; Ashton try, 52mins, Ratchford goal, 14-19; Sneyd penalty goal, 69mins, 14-21; Connor try, 77mins, Sneyd goal, 14-27.
Penalties: Wolves 1 Hull 3
Referee: Liam Moore
Top Man: Vote here
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