Hull KR avoided any dangers of a Challenge Cup hangover after completely dominating Catalans Dragons for a 68-6 victory at Sewell Group Craven Park.
Rovers were ruthless with 12 tries in the Round 14 tie, rewarding the record home crowd who created a party atmosphere welcoming home their Wembley heroes. It marked the heaviest Super League defeat ever suffered by the Dragons, while they marked an another unwanted Super League record for most minutes without scoring a try after surpassing Wakefield’s previous record of 259.
It was an ill-disciplined night for the visitors, which was made worse when captain Ben Garcia was sent off for punching Elliot Minchella and Mikey Lewis halfway through the first half.
Willie Peters named his strongest squad available, with attention returning to the League Leaders’ Shield and maintaining their form at the top of the table. Jared Waerea-Hargreaves and Joe Burgess missed out due to fresh injuries, while Micky McIlorum returned to his rehab after making a remarkable return to feature in the Challenge Cup Final. The changes saw Bill Leyland, Eribe Doro and Noah Booth feature.
Challenge Cup try-scorer Tom Davies started the party on the pitch after just 14 minutes, and the points came thick and fast after. James Batchelor and Sauaso Sue crossed the whitewash within the next 10 minutes, with the latter having to pass a head injury assessment. Franck Maria was sent to the sin-bin for his high contract on his Hull KR counterpart.
Then at 18-0, Catalans captain Garcia was sent to the sin bin after a moment of madness that saw him swing punches at Minchella and Lewis. It was clear frustration from the skipper, who had received a shove from his Rovers counterpart.
The hosts immediately made the Dragons pay, with Kelepi Tanginoa bulldozing his way over and Jack Broadbent, back in the centres, scoring against 11 men – his seventh Super League try of the year.
Batchelor then made it a first-half brace, before Lewis scored the easiest try he’ll ever get after Catalans full-back Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet failed to deal with the half-back’s short kick.
The Dragons, led by interim coach Joel Tomkins, were awful. Hull KR on the other hand showed no signs of a hangover, despite their days of celebrations and a shorter preparation for the fixture.
Peters’ side led 38-0 at the break, and it took the hosts just six minutes to continue the scoring as prop forward Sue made it a double for only the second time in his career.
Luke Keary then ended Catalans’ drought after more than five hours of action, selling a dummy to split Rovers’ defence to avoid another zero for the Perpignan-based outfit.
Rovers hit the 50-point mark on 65 minutes, after reigning Man of Steel Lewis darted from dummy-half for his 14th Super League try.
Booth, who made a try-scoring debut at Magic Weekend, then joined the fun on 72 minutes for 56-6, before further scores from Jai Whitbread and Tyrone May in the closing exchanges helped claim a dominant 68-8 result. Arthur Mourgue converting 10 goals from 12 attempts against his former club.
Hull KR: Arthur Mourgue, Tom Davies, Peta Hiku, Jack Broadbent, Noah Booth, Mikey Lewis, Tyrone May, Sauaso Sue, Jez Litten, Dean Hadley, Jai Whitbread, James Batchelor, Elliot Minchella. Bench: Kelepi Tanginoa, Jack Brown, Eribe Doro, Bill Leyland.
Tries: Davies (13’), Batchelor (18’, 35’), Sue (21’, 46’), Tanginoa (27’), Broadbent (32’), Lewis (38’, 64’), Booth (71′), Whitbread (76′), May (78′).
Goals: Mourgue: 10/12
Catalans Dragons: Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet, Tommy Makinson, Matthieu Laguerre, Reimis Smith, Nick Cotric, Luke Keary, Theo Fages, Chris Satae, Alrix Da Costa, Julian Bousquet, Arthur Romano, Ben Garcia, Oliver Partington. Bench: Tevita Pangai Jr, Tariq Sims, Bayley Sironen, Franck Maria.
Tries: Keary (61’)
Goals: Aispuro-Bichet 1/1