A one place improvement as possible for either side in the final game of the Magic Weekend as a Warrington Wolves side who were looking for a return to the top of the table took on a Hull FC side who had an eye on going ahead of Huddersfield Giants and into ninth place in the table.

The bookies favoured a Warrington win, handicapping them by eight points on the coupon, but Daryl Powell’s side came into the game with more than a little concern about the resurgence in form from the Airlie Birds after a poor fist half of the season.

After yesterday’s day of the underdog, today was the day of the favourite, and most thought that Warrington would continue the trend.

It was far too easy for Warrington as they opened the scoring on three minutes, George Williams kicking to the corner with the ball collected by Connor Wrench to shrug off his tackler and stretch for the line. Stefan Ratchford added the conversion from wide for a 6-0 lead.

It was all one-way traffic. On thirteen George Williams made the most of a poor FC pass as he dribbled the ball forward and picked it up to go in from forty metres. Ratchford added the conversion for 12-0.

In sixteen FC got over the whitewash for the first time, Danny Houghton collecting a Darnell McIntosh tap back of a high kick and taking two strides to score under the sticks. Jake Clifford added the conversion to reduce the arrears to six points.

FC had eased themselves back into the game and only trailed by six at the interval, but it had been a half dominated by the Wolves, despite not having the avalanche of points to show for it.

With the second half clock showing just fifty-five seconds Josh Griffin went close but the video referee couldn´t overrule the on-field official after he'd decided that the Hull man had been held up. But on forty-three Adam Swift chased down a Clifford kick to the corner and collected the ball over his shoulder to dab down in the left-hand corner. Clifford was just wide with the conversion attempt, FC just two points behind.

FC hit the front on forty-six, Griffin taking a Clifford delayed pass to hit a big gap in the defence and go in by the uprights. Clifford added the conversion for a 16-12 lead, FC totally dominated the opening exchanges of the second half.

It was three tries in ten minutes when Griffin took a Trueman cross-field kick to spin over the line and ground. Warrington shell-shocked. Clifford couldn’t add a simple conversion, but it had been an incredible turnaround for the Black and Whites.

On fifty-six the Warrington response arrives as Connor Wrench dove over in the corner off a Matt Dufty pass engineered him space wide. Ratchford kicked the conversion, in off the far upright and the Hull lead was back to two points.

A brilliant Hull try, and a hat-trick for Griffin, re-established the FC lead after a break downfield firstly through Tex Hoy who brought the ball away from his own twenty. Griffin had an unopposed twenty-metre run to the line. Clifford was wide with the kick, the margin between the two sides was six points, the game was still anyone’s.

Disaster for the Wolves when Dufty spilled a Clifford kick into touch on seventy-two and on the second tackle, Hoy found a big gap in the Warrington defence to dive over for the winning try. Clifford smashed his conversion between the sticks, the Wolves now needed two converted tries in five minutes. It was all over.

Two consecutive defeats for the Warrington Wolves proves that they are fallible, and this one from a position of command at 12-0. Hull FC were poor in the opening forty but managed to hang in the game and only trail by six at the interval, in the second half they barely put a foot wrong as they ran over the top of a Warrington side which had no answer. FC are up to ninth in the table as they go ahead of the Giants, Warrington ending the weekend in second place to the Catalans Dragons.

Hull FC: Hoy (T), Swift (T), Sutcliffe, Scott, McIntosh, Trueman, Clifford (G2), Fash, Houghton (T), Taylor, Griffin (3T), Lane, Gator. Subs: Swyer, Sao, Satae, Savelio. 18th Man: Lovodua.

Warrington Wolves: Dufty, Wrench (2T), Minikin, Ratchford (3G), Ashton, Williams (T), Drinkwater, Dudson, Clark, Vaughan, Currie, Harrison, Mata’utia.  Subs: Philbin, Bullock, Walker, Green. 18th Man: Thewlis.

Half-Time: 6-12.

Full-Time: 30-18.

Score Progression: 0-4, 0-6, 0-10, 0-12, 4-12, 6-12 : HT: 10-12, 14-12, 16-12, 20-12, 20-16, 20-18, 24-18, 28-18, 30-18 :FT.

Lead Exchanges: Warrington – Hull.

Referee:  Jack Smith.

Weekend Attendance: 63,369.