Kurt Haggerty believes Hull FC should have had a sin bin in the second half of Saturday’s clash.
Hull FC’s Aidan Sezer hits Bradford’s Joe Mellor with a high tackle.
Kurt Haggerty believes Hull FC captain Aidan Sezer should have been sin-binned for a challenge on Bradford Bulls man Joe Mellor in the second half of Saturday’s Super League game.
The Black and Whites’ skipper caught Mellor high, with the tackle penalised and Rowan Milnes adding two points from the tee. That goal took Bradford ahead 20-18 before Hull drew level with a penalty goal of their own. They then sealed the game through a Will Pryce drop goal and a late Cade Cust try.
But Haggerty has stated a yellow card would have been justified for Sezer, a view not shared by video referee Liam Moore, who had plenty of opportunity to review the incident as Mellor received treatment on the field. Ultimately, no further action was taken.
“In my opinion, it was 10 minutes in the bin,” Haggerty said post-match. “If that was one of my players and they got put in the bin, I would understand why.”
Meanwhile, Haggerty has told his Bradford side to find frustration in a defeat that ‘stings’ and not just be valiant losers after a spirited showing at the MKM Stadium.
The Bulls scored through Waqa Blake and a Connor Wynne brace and were good value in an entertaining clash, stunning Hull early on before taking the lead for a third time in the second half. Ultimately they didn’t take their chances, with Hull scrambling hard at the other end – and doing enough to get home.
“I don’t want to just be happy because we’ve come here and had a really good go against Hull FC,” Haggerty explained. “I want us to be frustrated. I want us to learn that we’ve done enough to win the game, but we’ve got to execute those moments.
“So yeah, it’s a very disappointing changing room in there. They believed they could win the game when they came here, and after the game, they still believed they could have won the game. We’ll take a lot of positives, but I want it to sting a little bit.”
He continued: “I spoke all pre-season about earning respect and I thought we did that here. We play a style of the moment that will create opportunity, and when you make so many line breaks in the second half against a very good team, you’ve got to execute those moments. You’ve got to play on the back of the line break, which we didn’t do enough of. We’ll get better at that.”
Ultimately it was Hull – namely Will Pryce – who iced their moments, and that was the difference.
“What you find in big games and in Super League is that it’s about big moments,” Haggerty said. “When you’ve got classy players, they usually come out in big moments. I thought they had that with Will.”
Haggerty also provided an injury update on Jayden Okunbor and Dan Russell. Okunbor left the field early in the game after colliding with Martin, while Russell suffered a knee injury in the second half.
“They both look pretty serious,” Haggerty added. “I’ll know more tomorrow (Sunday). The physios are pretty concerned with both of them.”
Haggerty also confirmed that Andy Ackers copped a dead leg but is okay.