Huddersfield Giants are on the verge of securing a top-four Super League finish.

But angry Paul Anderson knows that won’t be achieved at home to leaders St Helens on Friday if they play like they did against Hull FC yesterday.

The Giants just did enough to edge out the Black and Whites 38-28 to guarantee them a finishing spot in the top five.

With third-placed Wigan and fourth-placed Warrington clashing at the Halliwell Jones Stadium on Thursday night, it means the Giants will move up to fourth and secure a kinder play-off berth if they beat Saints and prevent them from claiming the League Leaders’ Shield 24 hours later. That’s because the Giants, Wigan and Warrington all have 35 points going into the final round of the regular season.

But head coach Anderson knows a massive improvement is required if his side wants to topple former Giants coach Nathan Brown’s Saints in a contest where the stakes couldn’t be higher.

“Our fate is in our own hands,” said Anderson, whose side had to fight back from an 18-4 deficit after 33 minutes to see off a Hull side with nothing but pride to play for.

“That’s the big positive to take out of winning this game.

“The performance was patchy to say the least. We did just enough. We won, but my God, we need to be much better than that, starting against St Helens on Friday.

“If we keep on trying to take short cuts, we know we’ll get punished. To get to where we want to be, we simply can’t allow that to happen.”

“I think when we saw the Hull teamsheet we thought we could win with just enough effort to get by.

“But you can’t do that. A team with young players making their debuts can be dangerous because they’ve nothing to lose.”