Hull FC Edge Out Leeds In Yorkshire Derby Thriller

ByMatthew Cresswell
BBC Sport England


22 March 2026


206 Comments


Hull FC (14) 24


Tries: Arthur, Sao, Litten Goals: Hardaker 6


Leeds (16) 16


Tries: McDonnell, Croft Goals: Connor 4


Hull FC edged out Leeds Rhinos in a pulsating Yorkshire derby to claim their 2nd victory of the Super League season.


An exceptional very first 40 minutes offered 30 points as both sides took it in turns to take the lead.


Tries from Jake Arthur, Ligi Sao and Davy Litten - along with 6 kicks from Zak Hardaker - implied the Black and Whites took the two points.


Carbon-copy shots from James McDonnell and Brodie Croft within the area of 6 minutes pushed the Rhinos into a narrow half-time lead but Hull FC shut out their opponents after the break to run out worthwhile winners.


After Jake Connor kicked Leeds in front after 5 minutes, a beautiful line break from Hull's James Bell permitted him to unselfishly set up Arthur to dive underneath the sticks and score versus the side his daddy coaches.


Leeds then kicked the restart out on the full, for which into Rhinos territory, and elusive play from Amir Bourouh at dummy half permitted Ligi Sao to crash over from close variety for his very first Super League attempt in two years.


The Rhinos' discipline let them down when dissent towards referee Liam Moore made it possible for a kick within range, and Hardaker included two more points as the visitors' deficit increased to 12 points after simply 17 minutes.


But Rhinos were back in the contest 8 minutes later on when an inch-perfect kick from Lachie Miller found McDonnell on the move to dot down in front of the visiting advocates.


A spectacular diving catch from Miller then continued a flowing relocation as McDonnell sought to get a 2nd try in a few minutes, but he was stopped on the line by good scrambling defence from Hull.


Another fragile kick - this time from Ash Handley - then discovered Croft in area to dot down beside the sticks, and by the time Connor had actually included the extras the rating was level at 14-14.


An excellent ankle-tap deal with from Cade Cust stopped Chris Hankinson in his tracks however after referee Moore had actually penalised the hosts for a high deal with in the build-up, Connor kicked Rhinos in front 2 minutes before the break from the best touchline.


Just one minute after half-time, Leeds' Maika Sivo was penalised for getting the marker and Hardaker slotted over to level the match once again.


And Hull edged themselves back in front minutes later when Hardaker kicked a fifth goal in front of the sticks.


The home side extended their lead when John Asiata's stunning grubber kick was collected on the bounce by Litten to dot down and Hardaker's 6th successful kick made it a two-score match.


With 5 minutes remaining, Connor began an attempt to bring the match to within a transformed shot - but the ball struck the upright and bounced to security as the home side hung on in front of more than 12,000 fans to declare victory.


'A little bit of a reality-check' - post-match response


Hull FC manager John Cartwright told BBC Radio Humberside:


"They're a really hazardous side to bet.


"So, bit worried going into the video game, however I understood that we prepared well - there were a few missteps during the week but we had a good session Thursday.


"Courage is a prerequisite in any game at this level. Sometimes, you need to reveal a bit more nerve than normal and I believed we did that today.


"Effort-wise and grit-wise, we completed well. We did the basics a lot much better than we've been doing, which's the foundation of your game. We need to do that nine times out of 10 now."


Leeds Rhinos manager Brad Arthur told BBC Radio Leeds:


"A bit of a reality-check isn't it? Basically, we're not as excellent as we think we are. A few of that ill-discipline is not what I desire our club to be about and belong to.


"It was pretty awkward, a few of the discipline in the 2nd half. A great deal of chaps just wish to discuss the referee rather of doing their own task. Not excellent enough.


"It's really dissatisfied me. We require to get to the bottom of it [the ill-discipline] and discover that out on Tuesday [when the players go back to training]


"What's altered? We worked out in Vegas. So what? We need to accept some accountability and do something about it."


Hull FC: Hardaker; Briscoe, Romano, Litten, Martin; Cust, Arthur; Hill, Bourouh, Sao, Bell, Bailey, Asiata.


Interchanges: C Kemp, Fash, Laidlaw, Lisone.


Leeds: Miller; Sivo, Newman, Handley, Hankinson; Croft, Connor; Oledzki, Levi, Palasia, Watkins, McDonnell, C. Smith.


Interchanges: Holroyd, Jenkins, O'Connor, Bird.


Referee: Liam Moore.


Hull FC


Leeds Rhinos