Hull FC coach Simon Grix full of pride after Warrington Wolves made to scrap for everything

Hull came into the contest on the back of their first victory in 12 attempts against Leeds last week and dominated possession and territory for much of Saturday’s match at the MKM Stadium.

But Warrington were clinical and they led 12-0 at the break through Toby King and Matt Dufty.

The hosts hit back with tries from Denive Balmforth, Liam Sutcliffe and Tom Briscoe, with Danny Walker then crossing for the visitors to set up a blockbuster final 11 minutes with the scores at 18-18.

George Williams saw his drop-goal effort superbly blocked by Brad Fash but Dufty picked up the loose ball from 25 metres and arced his way into the left corner for the match-winning try with two minutes remaining.

Grix was happy with the overall performance and with his young side’s togetherness after injuries meant only one interchange was available in the closing stages.

“It might have been a good one to watch today for the neutral, end to end at times,” he said.

“Obviously proud of the lads and I thought they had a really good dig and it was important that they backed up a good performance with another good performance in terms of effort and a bit of energy, and they showed some togetherness.

“I felt we could have maybe got something out of that game. I’m proud of them because they had a good performance but also had some adversity.

“They went through a bit today and to get beat on the bell was a bit of a sucker punch.

“But I think we probably showed them signs again that we are heading in the right direction. (I’m) really disappointed not to come away with something.

“We’ve been hit by 50 a number of times this year and I’d rather feel like this, as much as this one hurts, I’d rather feel like this than like that, so lots of positives.”

Warrington boss Sam Burgess admitted he was “happy we’ve got away with one” after the hard-fought triumph.

It was not a vintage display from the Wolves but they maintained their Super League top-four ambitions with their first win in four matches thanks to Dufty’s late heroics.

“I don’t know how I feel,” Burgess said. “I’m happy with the two points. We need to do better, too many mistakes.

“I’m surprised we’ve won because we completed at 44 per cent of the game so it’s not good enough, but on the other side, I’m proud of their effort in some areas because they’ve managed to win a game with no ball and giving it up every other set.

“I thought Hull were good, they tried hard and played with a lot of energy and they’ll be disappointed with the result and I guess we are on the other side of it and we’re happy we’ve got away with one.

“It’s a funny game. We’ve got two points that we came for and it wasn’t a polished performance, far from it.”

Hull FC: Moy, Briscoe, Tuimavave, Sutcliffe, Martin, Trueman, Reynolds, Ese’ese, Smith, Aydin, Scott, Lane, Sao. Substitutes: Ashworth, Balmforth, Fash, Gardiner

Warrington Wolves: Dufty, Thewlis, King, Tai, Ashton, Williams, Drinkwater, Harrison, Walker, Vaughan, Nicholson, Holroyd, Currie. Substitutes: Musgrove, Bullock, Powell, Wood

Referee: Ben Thaler