A stirring victory against Wakefield Trinity, who they play in the semi-finals of the Carnegie Challenge Cup in two weeks time, did wonders for the self-belief of a team which has yet to reveal its true colours.

They may still be troubled by the symptoms of the malaise that has wrecked their play-off hopes in 2008 – in the first half on Saturday night the black and whites forced Wakefield to drop out five times and crossed the Trinity line on three occasions yet still reached the interval trailing 12-6 – but Hull were able to find a way to win, a feat which has all too often proved beyond them.

There were also periods in the second half when Hull were possessed of their authority of old, not least each time they attacked down their left through Kirk Yeaman, Craig Hall and Tom Briscoe.

Hall scored two tries, his second a splendid breakaway effort spanning 70 metres, while Great Britain centre Yeaman and Briscoe, an 18-year-old three-quarter with a rich future, also touched down as Hull blew Wakefield away in the 30 minutes that followed the interval.

Trinity had no answer to the questions Hull asked of their defence as they crashed to a third successive defeat which raises serious doubts about their Cup and play-off credentials.

"You've got to question our mental fortitude," said Wakefield's coach John Kear. "The semi-final is coming up and you try not to let it affect you but I think it obviously is.

"That's the stark reality of the situation. Our standards have dropped dramatically in the last three weeks.

"I'm sick of trotting out the same reasons.

"I don't know whether the problem is mental or physical but there is obviously a problem. You only have to look at our last three second-half performances."

Even though they reached the break in front, Wakefield were rarely in control of the first meeting between the two sides in over a year.

Hull started strongly and after applying early pressure with a low kick by Shaun Berrigan, who set a magnificent lead in attack, they went close to opening the scoring only for Ewan Dowes to be held up over the line.

Wakefield's relief was short-lived, however, for in the 12th-minute the visitors struck with a fortuitous try by hooker Danny Houghton whose grubber kick hit the post cushion and rolled back into his grasp.

More nifty footwork, this time by Brad Drew who twice kicked the ball on for Jamie Rooney to score, allowed Wakefield to draw level before a high kick by Brough set up a try for Sean Gleeson, who found himself in surprising amounts of space when the ball came down on the right.

Trinity had a try disallowed when Dale Ferguson's effort was overruled for an obstruction on Willie Manu by Jason Golden but the home side were able to stretch their lead with a penalty by Brough just before the break.

Worryingly for Hull the penalty was for a trip on Sam Obst by their captain Lee Radford, who was also placed on report and could find himself hauled before the disciplinary committee tomorrow evening.

The Wildcats added a third try through Drew on 75 minutes but by then they were chasing a lost cause with Hull having raced clear courtesy of some enterprising and highly entertaining play.

Their fightback was inspired by the brilliance of Berrigan and the might of Manu, who beat off three would-be tacklers four minutes into the second half to send Yeaman away for a fine try.

Manu was also involved in the move that brought Hull another try in the 49th minute when he traded passes with Berrigan for the former Australia Test hooker to flick the ball out for Hall to steal in for his first try.

Hall then combined with Yeaman to set up a try for Briscoe, who darted through unopposed to get the touch to a low kick by Yeaman and though Danny Tickle could not add the goal he was able to land the conversion to the try of the match on 70 minutes. It was scored by Hall from a move begun deep inside the Hull half by Briscoe, who did well to keep the ball alive as he was bundled into touch.

Hall still had 70 metres to go but he skipped out of Jason Demetriou's tackle, breezed past a flying tackle by Matt Blaymire and held off the pursuing Drew to reach the posts and secure a win which was deeply satisfying for Hull and their coach Richard Agar.

"I thought we showed a lot of commitment to each other and that was the most pleasing thing," said Agar. "The players' confidence could have taken a big knock after what happened against Warrington and Catalans in our last two matches but they responded really well and showed a bit of resilience to win through.

"There's still a fair bit of work to do but we're working hard and will continue to do so until the season is over.

"We'll need to play a lot better than that in the semi and I know Wakefield will be more fired up.

"At the same time we'll take a lot of confidence from this win. It's done us no harm at all."


Wakefield Trinity Wildcats: Blaymire; Blanch, Gleeson, Henderson, Petersen; Rooney, Brough; Moore, Drew, Wilkes, Ferres, Golden, Demetriou. Substitutes: Bibey, Ferguson, Obst, Sculthorpe.

Hull: Sing; Briscoe, G Horne, Yeaman, Raynor; Washbrook, Berrigan; Dowes, Houghton, Thackray, Manu, Radford, Tickle. Substitutes: Broughton, Hall, Wheeldon, Cusack.

Referee: R Silverwood (Mirfield).