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The Herald Scotland
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Willie Peters had faith in Mikey Lewis kick as Hull KR clinch Challenge Cup
But after Tom Davies stretched to touch down following an error from Aaron Lindop, it was left to Lewis – handed kicking duties in the absence of the Cup-tied Arthur Mourgue, to nail the two-pointer that sparked raucous celebrations among the red and white hordes behind the post. 'That was probably the moment when I was the most calm,' insisted Peters, who celebrated wildly with his players – many of whom had been part of their agonising 2023 golden point defeat to Leigh – at the final hooter less than one and a half minutes after his side had nudged back ahead. 'It was a massive moment and I believed he was going to get it because of the belief he has in himself. He's not our number one kicker but I felt really comfortable and confident when he had the ball in his hands because that was his moment.' Peters did not hide from the fact that Rovers had been second best for much of an attritional contest in which Lewis' early penalty looked set to give them a slender half-time lead before Josh Thewlis took advantage of an outrageous ricochet to give his side the lead. Sneyd, who added a superb two points from the touchline and would end the day by becoming only the second player to win the Lance Todd Trophy for man of the match in the second half, continued to dominate after the break until Tyrone May's clever kick led to the late, late drama. 'It wasn't the best performance but it was gritty and that's all you need in a Cup final,' added Peters. 'You need to have grit and you need to enjoy discomfort, and they certainly did that. 'They were uncomfortable for long periods, Warrington just kept throwing so much at us and Marc Sneyd was exceptional, but we found a way and I'm so proud of this playing ground and staff. 'The way they won that match today shows the character and the type of players that they are. It's in our DNA, it's who we are. East Hull people are gritty, tough and resilient. We don't do anything easily, it was tough out there but we found a way.' Deflated Warrington head coach Sam Burgess said he could not have asked any more from his side, who controlled the majority of the match and were on the verge of securing their first Wembley triumph since 2019. Tom Davies (left) celebrates his late try (Martin Rickett/PA Burgess, whose side were also beaten by Wigan in last year's final, said: 'You don't always get what you deserve and I don't think we deserved to lose today. 'We controlled the game very well and executed the plan. Unfortunately these things can happen, we were just on the wrong side of things today.' Burgess refused to pin any blame on Lindop, whose failure to properly ground May's late kick let in Davies for the decisive score. Burgess admitted some confusion over the awarding of the try, since replays showed the Warrington winger had appeared to ground the ball with his stomach, but the RFL later clarified that grounding with anything but the hand is only allowed on an offensive play. 'I think he's an amazing young man,' Burgess said of Lindop. 'He's an amazing player and he's got such a bright future, so that's what I think about Aaron. I absolutely love him.' Warrington's James Harrison sits with his head in his hands (Nigel French/PA) Burgess's side have struggled for much of his second season and went into the game as heavy underdogs, languishing outside the Super League play-off places in eighth place and missing talismanic duo Danny Walker and Matty Ashton through injury. But Burgess said once the raw disappointment had eased, his players would take much from the occasion that would hopefully spark a play-off push. 'We'll move on – suffering and pain and loss and everything like that are really crucial to our development and growth as a group and we're certainly suffering at the minute,' he added. 'There's a lot of pain in there but we'll take a really positive thing out of it as a group. We have great belief and it'll give us the resolve and determination to attack the second half of the season.'
The Independent
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Hull KR snatch late win over Warrington to end 40-year wait for trophy
Mikey Lewis held his nerve to kick the conversion that ended 40 years of Hull KR hurt in a dramatic finish to the Betfred Challenge Cup final at rain-lashed Wembley. The Super League leaders looked set to extend the agony as opponents Warrington entered the last three minutes with a four-point lead, before Tom Davies flopped onto Tyrone May's kick to haul the Robins level. To a roar that could be heard back home in a presumably deserted east Hull, Lewis then stepped up to boot his side into the history books, completing an 8-6 win that erased the memory of their last-gasp agony against Leigh in 2023. It was a remarkable ending to a contest that never quite caught fire and had seemed increasingly likely to be decided by a masterclass from Warrington scrum-half Marc Sneyd, for whom a record-equally Lance Todd trophy for man of the match will prove no consolation. Sneyd's mastery of the tough conditions had forced the normally reliable Rovers into a series of errors and it was his boot on the stroke of half-time that set up the opening try for Josh Thewlis and looked set to hand Warrington their first Challenge Cup triumph since 2019. Frustration had slowly mounted for Rovers, who mostly out-muscled their opponents in an grimly fought-out opening 40 but had only a two-point penalty from Lewis to show for their ascendency in the opening half-hour. The conditions could cost Rovers dear when the otherwise impressive Joe Burgess dropped a slippery high kick from Sneyd in his own 10, and Wire seized on a stroke of fortune when Sneyd's kick ricocheted off a Rovers leg and out wide for Thewlis to score. With fellow half-back and captain George Williams finding his way into the game after almost eight weeks out following ankle surgery, Sneyd was revelling in the extra responsibility, and Warrington could have gone ahead earlier when Adam Holroyd slapped down a loose ball only for his effort to be ruled out for stripping the ball in the build-up. Jez Litten's introduction midway through the opening period turned the screw in Rovers' favour and Lewis capitalised on their best period of pressure by kicking them in front after being caught high by Ben Currie. Warrington rode their luck to wrest the tie in their favour on the half-time hooter, then summoned a sterling defensive effort to keep out a Rovers repeat set as the favourites piled on the pressure after the break. Sneyd's relentless probing with the boot continued to lift his side out of difficulty, while Rovers made more uncharacteristic errors as the pressure began to mount, captain Elliot Minchella guilty of squirting the ball out of his grasp at the play-the-ball. With the minutes ticking down it looked like more agony for Rovers until Davies made ground on the right to serve up one last chance. From a subsequent penalty, May's kick was just missed by Warrington winger Arron Lindop, and Davies flapped it down to haul his side level. Fittingly, it was left to home-grown hero Lewis to kick the decisive points and snatch Willie Peters' men their first trophy since 1985 with less than one and a half minutes left on the clock.
The Guardian
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Hull KR end 45-year wait to snatch Challenge Cup from Warrington
Hull KR secured their first major trophy in 40 years in dramatic fashion with Tom Davies's try two minutes from full-time and Mikey Lewis's conversion seizing the Challenge Cup away from Warrington. The Robins trailed in a pulsating final after Josh Thewlis's first-half try and Marc Sneyd's conversion made it 6-2. At that stage, it looked as though Rovers' lengthy wait for a major trophy would continue for at least another few months. Davies grounded a bouncing ball Warrington failed to deal with to level the scores before Lewis, the reigning Man of Steel, delivered the conversion to take the cup back to east Hull for the first time since 1980 and secure Rovers' first trophy of any kind since 1985. Hull KR took a huge gamble before a ball had even been kicked, naming Michael McIlorum in their starting lineup six weeks after a ruptured biceps that initially was thought to sideline him for three months. McIlorum's inclusion was merited, with the veteran providing a level of calm to Rovers as they began on the back foot. After navigating a tricky period in difficult conditions, they went ahead when Lewis kicked a penalty after he was caught high by Ben Currie. For large periods of an engrossing and attritional opening 40 minutes, it looked as though that would be the only score of the half. But with two minutes to go until the break, Warrington struck. Sneyd's kick bounced off a defender and into the arms of Thewlis, who scored in the corner before Sneyd nervelessly converted from the touchline to make it 6-2. Rovers offered little in the way of a meaningful threat and Warrington seemed to have the game within their grasp, with Sneyd kicking them safe on multiple occasions. But then, as time ticked away, Warrington failed to deal with a Tyrone May kick, Davies pounced and Lewis converted to create history for the Robins. Wigan Warriors underlined their dominance of women's rugby league by dismantling St Helens 42-6 to win the Challenge Cup for the first time. The Warriors, who invested heavily in their women's side and brought in former Great Britain player Denis Betts as head coach, had promised to shake up the status quo and they did that in some style. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion The Saints had won the past four Wembley finals but they were no match for Wigan. Tries from Megan Williams, Mary Coleman and Emily Veivers put the Warriors into a commanding 18-0 lead by half-time and though you wondered whether St Helens' big-match experience could help them mount a comeback, they were once again second-best after half-time. The Warriors made it 24-0 when Isabel Rowe scored before converting her own try. Katie Mottershead's try briefly gave the Saints some hope, but the Warriors soon restored their advantage with their fifth try. Eva Hunter scored it and Rowe once again converted, before Grace Banks's superb long-range try added further gloss to the scoreline for the Warriors. They would then score again to secure the biggest winning margin in a women's Challenge Cup final in the WSL era, as Anna Davies scored in the corner and Rowe superbly converted to keep up her perfect record from the tee.
