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 success of the Super League season.
An impressive 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 - in addition to 6 kicks from Zak Hardaker - meant the Black and Whites took the two points.
Carbon-copy shots from James McDonnell and Brodie Croft within the space of 6 minutes pushed the Rhinos into a narrow half-time lead however Hull FC locked out their challengers after the break to go out worthwhile winners.
After Jake Connor kicked Leeds in front after five minutes, a beautiful line break from Hull's James Bell enabled him to unselfishly established Arthur to dive underneath the sticks and rating versus the side his daddy coaches.
Leeds then kicked the restart out on the complete, for which Hull moved into Rhinos territory, and elusive play from Amir Bourouh at dummy half permitted Ligi Sao to crash over from close quarters for his first Super League try in 2 years.
The Rhinos' discipline let them down when dissent towards referee Liam Moore enabled a kick within variety, and Hardaker included 2 more points as the visitors' deficit increased to 12 points after just 17 minutes.
But Rhinos were back in the contest 8 minutes later when an inch-perfect kick from Lachie Miller found McDonnell on the move to dot down in front of the going to advocates.
A stunning diving catch from Miller then continued a streaming move as McDonnell wanted to get a 2nd try in a couple of minutes, however he was stopped on the line by great rushing defence from Hull.
Another fragile kick - this time from Ash Handley - then discovered Croft in area to dot down next to the sticks, and by the time Connor had actually added the additionals ball game was level at 14-14.
An exceptional ankle-tap take on 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 .
Just one minute after half-time, Leeds' Maika Sivo was penalised for taking out the marker and Hardaker slotted over to level the match again.
And Hull edged themselves back in front minutes later when Hardaker kicked a 5th goal in front of the sticks.
The home side extended their lead when John Asiata's beautiful grubber kick was gathered on the bounce by Litten to dot down and Hardaker's 6th effective kick made it a two-score match.
With 5 minutes staying, Connor began an effort to bring the match to within a converted try - however the ball struck the upright and bounced to safety as the home side held on in front of more than 12,000 fans to declare victory.
'A bit of a reality-check' - post-match response
Hull FC boss John Cartwright informed BBC Radio Humberside:
"They're a truly harmful side to bet.
"So, bit anxious entering into the game, but I understood that we prepared well - there were a couple of missteps during the week however we had a great session Thursday.
"Courage is a prerequisite in any game at this level. Sometimes, you require to reveal a little bit more courage than normal and I thought we did that today.
"Effort-wise and grit-wise, we completed well. We did the fundamentals a lot much better than we've been doing, and that's the foundation of your game. We have to do that nine times out of 10 now."
Leeds Rhinos boss Brad Arthur told BBC Radio Leeds:
"A little 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 want our club to be about and be part of.
"It was quite awkward, a few of the discipline in the second half. A great deal of blokes simply desire to speak about the referee instead of doing their own job. Unsatisfactory.
"It's actually dissatisfied me. We need to get to the bottom of it [the ill-discipline] and find that out on Tuesday [when the players go back to training]
"What's altered? We went well in Vegas. So what? We need to accept some accountability and throw down the gauntlet."
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