Huddersfield Giants 22 Wakefield Trinity 18: Trinity slump to catastrophic loss after flying start

Even by Wakefield’s shaky standards, it was an awful defeat.

The game got off to an explosive start with four tries, two head injuries and a sin-binning in the opening quarter. At the end of that, Trinity were 14 points ahead, but that was as good as it got for Wakefield who made an absolute hash of the remaining 66 minutes.

Once they had reduced the gap to just four shortly after half-time, Huddersfield looked the likeliest winners and though they didn’t get in front until the 70th minute, they scored five tries to Trinity’s three and only some wayward goal kicking by the hosts kept Wakefield in the contest.

In front of a crowd of just 3,964, Wakefield could not have opened the game in better fashion and seemed in total control when they led by three converted tries after just 14 minutes.

Giants stand-off Olly Russell’s kick at the end of the first set hit Kelepi Tangino on the head and was picked up by Reece Lyne. He didn’t quite get over the line, but Russell was sin-binned for a professional foul, preventing the Trinity man getting up to play the ball and Lyne scored in the set from the penalty.

From the restart, Max Jowitt sliced through up to half way, with Ryan Hampshire in support. He had a lot to do, but outpaced the cover and slid over through a last-ditch tackle for Trinity’s second try.

Hampshire started at scrum-half in place of Mason Lino, who missed out - for the first time this year - because of an ankle injury. He converted both, from wide out and Trinity were 12-0 ahead inside six minutes.

Trinity scored again on 14, Liam Kay - a winger who was playing at acting-half - sending Joe Westerman over between the posts and Hampshire tagging on the extras.

At that stage it looked like a case of how many Trinity would win by, but through a combination of errors and costly penalties, the visitors lost their grip on the game and allowed Giants, without doing anything spectacular, to claw their way back.

They got off the mark five minutes after Westerman’s try when, following back to back penalties, Louis Senior touched down at the corner, getting past his brother Innes who is on loan at Trinity from Wakefield.

The siblings were in direct opposition, with Innes on Trinity’s right wing and Louis on the right flank for Huddersfield.

Giants’ fightback continued with tries either side of half-time, the first gifted to them in farcical fashion. Sam Wood’s kick didn’t seem to pose much danger, but Innes Senior fumbled it backwards over Wakefield’s line, eventually managed to pick up, then - being pinned in - tried a disastrous offload straight to Wood, who touched down for the easiest of scores.

Will Pryce, who took over kicking duties after Russell failed a head injury assessment, improved to cut the deficit to eight points at half-time, but that was Huddersfield’s only successful kick.

Giants halved that nine minutes into the second period, following a penalty and two six-agains, when Jermaine McGillvary crossed at the corner off a pass by Leroy Cudjoe, who did return from his early head knock.

McGillvary was in again with 19 minutes left, from Sam Wood’s pass, in the set after Giants’ Sam Hewitt was tackled on the last, but Trinity were penalised for a ball steal.

That levelled the scores and Giants hit the front nine later when Jack Wardle touched down from a kick by Pryce. Trinity had some pressure after that, but never really threatened to pull the game from the fire.

Huddersfield Giants: Ashall-Bott, McGillvary, Jake Wardle, Cudjoe, L Senior, Russell, Pryce, Yates, Peats, Wilson, Jones, McQueen, Trout. Subs S Wood, Hewitt, Peteru, Greenwood.

Wakefield Trinity: Jowitt, I Senior, Lyne, Arundel, Johnstone, Miller, Hampshire, Fifita, Kay, Green, Ashurst, Tanginoa, Westerman. Subs K Wood, Batchelor, Battye, Arona.

Referee: James Child (Dewsbury).

Attendance: 3,964.