Challenge Cup final: Hull KR 16-17 Leigh Leopards - Leopards win first title for 52 years

1 year ago 20

Hull KR (8) 16
Tries: Litten, Parcell Goals: Schneider 4
Leigh (10) 17
Tries: Lam, Briscoe Goals: Reynolds 4 Drop-goal: Lam

Leigh Leopards won their archetypal Challenge Cup rubric for 52 years aft they edged retired a valiant Hull KR connected aureate constituent successful a thriller astatine Wembley.

Jez Litten deed backmost for Hull KR aft Ben Reynolds' aboriginal punishment but Lachlan Lam responded with a good solo try.

Brad Schneider's kicking levelled things up 10-10 but Tom Briscoe seemed to person won it for Leigh with his try.

Matt Parcell's precocious effort took it to aureate point, however, but Lachlan Lam kicked the winning drop-goal for Leigh.

This was a breathless matter astatine Wembley that looked intolerable to telephone throughout, arsenic 2 teams with precise small betwixt them played retired a contention that took abrupt decease to separate.

Errors punctuated the play, but besides added to the excitement, arsenic 2 teams starved of the large juncture turned up and delivered a nervy thriller.

Moments of prime broke done the brutality, specified arsenic Elliot Minchella's ghosting tally to tee up Litten's score, and a fantastic acceptable up to nonstop O'Donnell done successful reply for Lam's opener.

Discipline threatened to undo Rovers successful particular, erstwhile Minchella was sinbinned, but the lone points successful that spell really came from Schneider's boot.

The crippled was nip and tuck successful the second-half, with Leigh's cardinal players specified arsenic Asiata and Ipape starting to emblem from agelong minutes.

Briscoe's effort was different accumulation of Leigh astatine their sharpest, slicing retired wide, and it looked enough.

However, Rowan Milnes' 'Hail Mary' footwear into backfield was not dealt with by Zak Hardaker and Parcell pounced to instrumentality the crippled to aureate point.

Neither broadside deserved the sensation of defeat, but aft missed attempts by Gareth O'Brien and Brad Schneider, Lam came up with the clutch play to springiness his begetter and his squad a infinitesimal of glory to savour.