Hull FC produced an incredible comeback with winger Lewis Martin scoring a hat-trick of tries to lead his side to a 26-22 victory over holders Wigan Warriors in their Betfred Challenge Cup fourth-round tie at the Brick Community Stadium.
Wigan had a healthy 22-6 lead over Hull FC at half-time and looked in good form, but a stunning resurgence from their opponents derailed their chances of making it past the last-16 stage.
The Warriors have won the competition a record 21 times, with five-time champions Hull FC last lifting the trophy in 2017.
How Hull claimed a dramatic win
Matt Peet’s Wigan side looked well on course for the quarter-finals after tries from Zach Eckersley, Jai Field, Junior Nsemba and Liam Farrell saw them sweep into their healthy interval lead.
Hull, who have shown plenty of fight this season under new coach John Cartwright, had only a converted try from Herman Ese’ese to show for their efforts and looked set to slide out of the competition.
Hull FC celebrate their victory over Wigan
But, after Field limped off with a hamstring injury, the visitors rallied through tries from Amir Bourouh and Lewis Martin, who grabbed his second eight minutes from time to put his side within four of the hosts.
Aidan Sezer’s kick from the touchline further narrowed Wigan’s advantage and a strong spell of pressure resulted in Martin completing his hat-trick two minutes from time, bursting over in the corner from Sezer’s long pass to seal a stunning win.
Wigan Warriors’ Patrick Mago (L) comforts Adam Keighran (R) following their shock defeat to Hull FC
Widnes foiled by Warrington
Late tries from Ben Currie and Zane Musgrove broke Widnes hearts as Cheshire neighbours Warrington fought back to claim a 26-16 win in a classic at the DCBL Stadium.
The Championship club looked the likely winners for long periods and a try from Jack Owens midway through the second half saw them dreaming of adding another chapter to their illustrious history in the competition.
Instead, Sam Burgess’ men finally found a way to avoid embarrassment despite another ragged display, Currie stretching home from George Williams’ kick to the corner before Musgrove muscled over to confirm his side’s place in the quarter-finals.
Catalans Dragons cruised to a 46-18 win over Championship side Featherstone in Perpignan, with Nick Cotric and Sam Tomkins scoring twice in a nine-try show.
Sky Sports will again show every game of the Super League live this season – including two matches in each round exclusively live, with the remaining four matches each week shown on Sky Sports+ via the red button.
