Huddersfield Giants finally have a result they can build on, and York Knights were on the wrong end of it. Jim Lenihan's side ended a 12-match Super League losing run with a 24-22 victory at York, recovering after letting a 24-10 lead slip with 10 minutes left.
It was Huddersfield's first win since 4 April and only their third Super League success of the season, with two of those victories coming against York. For Lenihan, appointed in May, it was also his first win in charge and one that came at a crucial moment in the lower half of the table.
A win Huddersfield badly needed
The scoreline underlined both the relief and the concern. Huddersfield had done the hard part by building a two-score cushion, only to be forced to see out a tense finish as York tried to extend their recent improvement.
That matters because the Giants came into the game with 12 successive Super League defeats behind them, and anything less than a win would have left the pressure building again before Thursday's meeting with Hull. Instead, they have cut the gap to second-bottom Hull FC to four points, which gives the result real significance beyond one narrow victory.
York's run is stopped
York, meanwhile, saw their positive momentum checked after three straight wins had already been interrupted by defeats to Toulouse and Huddersfield. Earlier in July, York had beaten Huddersfield at Magic Weekend, so there was a sense that this was a fixture both sides understood well.
Huddersfield's response was the most important part. The Giants have not solved every problem with this result, and the late wobble showed that clearly, but it does at least give Lenihan something concrete to work with after a difficult first stretch in charge.
For York Knights, the frustration is that a match they had given themselves a chance to salvage ended in another setback. For Huddersfield, though, this was the kind of win that can change the mood, even if only for a few days.
