A NIGHTMARE second half sealed Huddersfield Giants’ opening-night Super League fate as they were ripped apart by hosts Hull and were left to pick up the pieces of a demoralising 38-12 defeat.
It was looking so good early on as coach Rick Stone’s men charged into a deserved 12-4 lead after 18 highly-encouraging minutes.
But after Albert Kelly crashed over for the hosts’ first try just before the break, it started to go horribly wrong.
In the space of 19 minutes, Huddersfield conceded fives tries to trail 38-12 by the 63rd minute and wave goodbye to any dreams of a morale-boosting round-one triumph.
The Giants suffered the setback of going into the game without England winger Jermaine McGillvary, who was still struggling with a slight injury niggle.
In his place came Darnell McIntosh.
There was also a place in the starting line-up for Adam Walne on his full Huddersfield debut following his switch from Salford.
And before either man had the chance to get into the swing of the action, Marc Sneyd was scoring the first points of the new Super League season with a third-minute penalty.
He then doubled his tally with a second effort on the 10-minute mark after the visitors conceded their third penalty in an effort to keep their strong-starting hosts at bay.
But it was the Giants who grabbed the competition’s first try when Ryan Hinchcliffe crashed over from a tap penalty in the 14th minute - Hull’s goalline defence was, however, ordinary to say the least - and Danny Brough added the extras to nudge his side 6-4 ahead.
Then on their next attack, the lead was extended when Adam O’Brien’s perfectly-executed grubber kick gave Ukuma Ta’ai the simplest of scores.
Brough again converted and it was 12-4 after 18 minutes.
Jordan Turner almost scored against his former club in the 24th minute but was held up over the tryline.
A Hull hand then prevented McIntosh from strolling over for a walk-in as Hull struggled to keep their opponents at bay.
Yet aided by referee Scott Mikalauskas awarding Hull four soft penalties on the trot, the Black and Whites were able to get a foothold back in the contest as Albert Kelly crashed over from close range and Sneyd landed his third goal to make it 12-10 to the Giants three minutes before the break.
Just like in the first half, it was the home side who were the first to strike as a Sneyd 40-20 created the position for Fetuli Talanoa to barge over in the corner within four minutes of the restart.
Sneyd added the touchline goal and Hull were now four points to the good.
The lead was then increased five minutes later as Sneyd’s boot again did the damage, with his delightful chip finding Talanoa to complete a quick-fire double. Almost predictably it was converted, and it was now 22-12.
With errors starting to pile up, the Giants were doing little to help their cause, with Jake Connor on hand to stroll over against his old mates after Danny Brough had just kicked out on the full.
Sneyd landed his sixth goal, and with a quarter of the contest still remaining, it looked as if a very long final 20 minutes could be on the cards, especially when Talanoa completed his hat trick in the corner just as the hour mark ticked by.
Another Sneyd goal made it 34-12.
The horrors kept on coming in the 63rd minute when Jake Mamo fumbled a high ball and the alert Jamie Shaul gratefully accepted the gift to cross for a fifth second-half score, although on this occasion the deadly goalkicking half-back was off target and failed to break the 40-point barrier.
To rub salt into the Giants’ gaping wound, starting prop Sebastine Ikahihifo required a lengthy spell of treatment in the 78th minute, although he was able to walk off the field surrounded by several medics.
It summed up that horrible second half.
