A try six minutes from time from Garreth Carvell gave Hull a hard-fought victory in a fluctuating and richly entertaining game in difficult conditions at Belle Vue.

A try six minutes from time from Garreth Carvell gave Hull a hard-fought victory in a fluctuating and richly entertaining game in difficult conditions at Belle Vue.

The scores were tied and the match was capable of swinging either way when Paul Cooke got away a kick off-balance and Carvell followed up to touch down from marginally onside as the video replay showed. It was rough justice for the Wildcats who had played a full part in an evenly balanced game. They felt they could have had a couple of the referee's decisions in their favour in the dying stages which might have dragged the match back their way.

The former Newcastle Knights' wing Justin Ryder was Wakefield's strike weapon in the early minutes. His first try came when he raced past the static Richie Barnett the younger to reach Ben Jefferies' kick just before it ran into touch in goal and his second when he followed Gareth Ellis's break to take the pass and romp over. Both were evidence that Wakefield should have a lot more attacking prowess at their disposal this season, but in between them they were opened up by Hull for a try that kept the visitors in touch.

Carvell did the initial damage with a surge upfield and Hull then handled crisply to take advantage of the position and send the elder Richie Barnett over with Cooke landing the conversion from the touchline.

Jamie Rooney's conversion of Wakefield's second try gave them a four point lead, but that was wiped out by another piece of expert finishing by Barnett, this time taking Peter Lupton's pass and stamping out a tackle with Cooke's kick from a wide angle giving the lead back to Hull. Then it was the other Barnett's turn taking advantage of approach work by Cooke and Kirk Yeoman to score on the opposite wing.

Hull's lead did not last long into the second half. Within two minutes, Shaun Briscoe failed to gather Jeffries' low, skidding kick and, from that possession, Darrell Griffin, the prop Trinity got from the unlikely environs of Oxford, powered over with Rooney adding the equalising conversion before two penalties apiece saw the initiative shift one way and then the other.

Griffin and the Barnett who is old enough to know better stood trading blows and were both dispatched to the sin-bin as an already tense game reached boiling point. Richard Horne's drop goal edged Hull ahead before Rooney returned the compliment and the stage was set for Carvell's winner.

Wakefield : Halpenny; Ryder, Demetriou, Domic, Tadulala, Rooney; Jeffries, Griffin; March, Korkdis, Solomona, Wrench, Ellis. Substitutes used: Hood, Field, Handforth, Elima.

Hull: Briscoe; Best, Barnett Senior, Yeaman, Barnett Junior, Cooke; Horne, Carvell; Swain, King, McMenemy, McNicholas, Lupton. Substitutes us ed: Chester, Hill, Higgins, Whiting

Referee : R Laughton (Barnsley).