Hull KR 46-18 Bradford Bulls
Last updated on .From the section Rugby League
Kris Welham scored a hat-trick as Hull KR beat Bradford to leapfrog them in the Super League table.Hull KR 46-18 Bradford
Kyle Briggs gave the Bulls a dream start but Welham's quickfire brace gave the Robins a lead they would not lose.
Further tries from Blake Green, Jake Webster and Michael Dobson sent Hull KR into half-time leading 28-12.
Liam Watts stretched the lead soon after the restart and although Andy Lynch replied, Welham finished his hat-trick before Peter Fox wrapped it up.
It was only Hull KR's fifth Super League win of the season and lifted them to ninth in the table, while Bradford slip one place to 11th.Hull KR 46-18 Bradford
The Bulls have now gone six Super League games without a win, and even the return of Ben Jeffries, signed last weekend from Wakefield, could not inspire them.
Jeffries did play a key role in Bradford's bright start as Hull KR failed to deal with his perfectly lofted kick. Although second-rower Ian Sibbit could only fumble the ball backwards, Briggs was on hand to touch down.
But a knock-on 15 metres from his own line by Bulls loose forward James Donaldson handed the Robins the initiative and in their next set of six Dobson slipped in Welham.
The pair combined again moments later to nose Hull KR in front, although Dobson missed the conversion - his only failure from eight attempts.
Australian stand-off Blake Green raced through a hole in the Bradford defence to extend the lead.
And although his error led to Gareth Raynor reducing the deficit, he soon made amends by putting in Webster, before Dobson made the most of some poor tackling to touch down and ensure Hull KR went in at the break with a 16-point lead.
Webster and Fox combined soon after the restart to present Watts with a simple score and put the Robins seemingly out of sight.
Andy Lynch barged over to give Bradford hope and they may have been back in the contest had Elliott Whitehead not spilled the ball when his side looked certain to score.
But Welham ended any hope of a comeback when he made the most of some excellent work from Ben Cockayne to complete his treble - his 15th try in all competitions this season - before Webster offloaded to Fox to complete the rout late on.
POST-MATCH REACTION
Hull KR coach Justin Morgan:
"Kris [Welham] has been very consistent this season and he's worked hard on his offensive game, which was shown by his execution.
"But I thought his all-round game was excellent and he carried the ball well in defence as well as attack.
"When young players are given an accolade like a national team call-up, their focus can sometimes waver.
"However, he has benefited massively from his experience with England and you can see he's matured into a top-class centre.
"As a team, getting back-to-back victories for the first time this season is encouraging, and I think we can look back on this game as an important one.
"We played with some good tempo and scored some good tries and although we could have been more ruthless I am very satisfied."
Bradford coach Mick Potter:
"We started poorly and made some bad errors and it didn't get much better after that.
"In patches we look okay but we can't sustain a level of intensity for the full match.
"Given the body language of the players I think it has affected them as we are losing games and making a lot of mistakes.
"We tend to overplay sometimes and come up with some rash plays. It isn't about a lack of effort; it's a lack of communication.
"Once you start talking mathematically [about the play-offs] you start to worry, but it is still possible."
TEAMS
Hull KR: Briscoe, Fox, Welham, Webster, Cockayne, Green, Dobson, Vella, Hodgson, Wheeldon, Lovegrove, Galea, Netherton.
Replacements: Clinton, Watts, Fisher, Cook.
Bradford: Royston, Raynor, Platt, Whitehead, Ah Van, Jeffries, Briggs, Lynch, L'Estrange, Hargreaves, Sibbit, Olbison, Donaldson.
Replacements: Kopczak, Burgess, Diskin, Langley.
Att: 7,923.
Referee: Richard Silverwood (Dewsbury)
