The big Hull FC prop featured for the first time this year at Warrington.
Hull FC prop Herman Ese’ese.
Andy Last believes Hull FC prop Herman Ese’ese will be better for his comeback game at Warrington Wolves on Friday night – and is backing the prop to kick on for the remaining 15 games of the season.
Ese’ese made his first appearance of the year off the bench at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, capping a long road to recovery after rupturing his Achilles tendon last August.
Working his way back to fitness over the last nine months, Ese’ese showed promise in his performance, with his power and ability to bounce and break through tackles there to see. And for Last, that impact will only get stronger the more the front-row forward builds his match fitness and form up.
“He’s a big presence for us, Herman,” Last said post-match. “Obviously, he’s been a very, very good player for Hull FC. He was in exceptional form last year before he had his Achilles injury and he’s worked extremely hard to get himself back to a level.
“He’ll be far better next week for the minutes that he got this week. It’s great to see him back out there. He gives other players around him confidence and obviously he’s got that ability to cause the opposition problems as a tackle breaker. He’s a powerful ball runner, and that’s something that we need in our team.
“I was pleased with him. He got through some decent minutes, came up with some offloads and carried the ball reasonably well.”
Elsewhere, Last also pointed to the performance of Lloyd Kemp in the left centre spot, with the teenager holding his own and giving an encouraging account. Logan Moy was also namechecked, with Aidan Sezer returning to the side after missing the Leigh Leopards game due to selection reasons.
“Lloyd Kemp was solid defensively on that edge,” Last continued. “Logan Moy is doing some good bits with the ball, but then there are some errors in and around him. He is showing some capable signs that are improving weekly. He’s just got to get a little bit better in that decision-making.
“I thought Aidan Sezer ran the ball well and broke the line in that first half and then Marc Sneyd came up with a telling play just to stop him from finding that pass on the inside and Harvey Barron was just a yard off on the outside.
“We created a couple of opportunities, but we didn’t quite ice them – that’s where we’re at at the moment.”
Last also commented on Amir Bourouh’s sin bin at the end of the game, with the Hull hooker sent his marching orders in the 79th minute for interference at the play-the-ball.
“I think that’s just a little bit of frustration from Amir,” Last added. “He felt Warrington players were milking a six again and he got frustrated.
“And obviously that’s on the back of 78 minutes of hard work in the middle of the field, but Amir knows he needs to be better than that. He can’t let the frustration of the game get the better of him.”