Wakefield 14 Huddersfield 44: Memorable day for hat-trick hero Grix as Wildcats are overrun

The Giants, who began the season with three straight defeats, never looked back after former Wakefield player Grix’s three tries inside the first nine minutes helped put them 18-0 up and on their way to a fourth successive win at Belle Vue.

Wakefield hit back to close the gap to four points early in the second half but further tries from two other Wakefield old boys, Danny Brough and Brett Ferres, plus others from Leroy Cudjoe and Ukuma Ta’ai, helped the visitors to a comfortable 44-14 victory.

It was a fourth straight defeat for the Wildcats, who had started the season with so much hope after gaining back-to-back wins, and drops them to the foot of the table.

The match was memorable for Grix’s early heroics but little else as both sides produced a string of errors to leave both coaches frustrated.

The record for the fastest hat-trick of tries scored from the start of any match remains with Huddersfield’s former player and current assistant coach Chris Thorman, who scored his within six minutes and 54 seconds of the Giants’ National League Cup semi-final against Doncaster in 2002.

Read Sports Monday for Dave Craven’s match report and reaction.