Briers adds Midas touch

Hull KR 24 Warrington 25: Half-back strikes gold in extra time as Hull KR force Warrington to go the distance

Lee Briers' drop-goal five minutes into golden points extra time won a pulsating Challenge Cup quarter-final for Warrington which was taken into added time by Michael Dobson's late penalty.

Rovers had started as favourites to repeat the victory they recorded, as a National League club, over the same opponents at the same stage of the competition three years ago.

They showed why within the first three minutes, after Simon Grix lost the ball in Stanley Gene's tackle. Paul Cooke's visionary long pass to Peter Fox on the left wing opened up the Warrington defence and Kris Welham, whose rapid development was recognised by a new, three-year contract this week, was in support to take the inside pass and score the try and leave Dobson an easy conversion.

It was a thrilling start for the Robins, but they spent the rest of the first half with the smaller slice of possession and a disproportionate diet of defending on their plate.

They did well to limit Warrington to an equalising try. It came in the 17th minute, after a couple of penalties and a couple of goal-line drop-outs had built the pressure to the point where something had to give.

It was Jon Clarke who sprang the trap from dummy half, getting off his mark to throw the ball left to Michael Monaghan. He turned it back inside for Vinnie Anderson to go through and for Chris Bridge to add the goal. Both sides had their chances after that, but an intriguing Cup-tie remained deadlocked at half-time.

It was the Wolves that began the second half with what could have been the crucial thrust, Matt King getting free on the wing and hurling the ball back inside. Everyone with a Rovers affiliation thought it was forward, but Clarke's try stood.

It did nothing to deflate the home side's self-belief, as they struck back with three tries in 12 minutes. Dobson's beautifully-timed pass put Clint Newton through a gap for the first, before a cruel bounce which took Cooke's kick away from Richie Mathers for Ben Galea to touch down.

Best of the lot was the long-range effort, begun by Scott Murrell, continued by Daniel Fitzhenry and Dobson and finished by Jake Webster.

Even that did not throw the Wolves off the scent, however, with King scoring from Briers' kick to the corner to reduce the margin to four points.

Four minutes later, Warrington were ahead, Adrian Morley splitting the defence, Briers supporting and Bridge claiming both the try and the conversion.

Referee Phil Bentham awarded a 77th minute penalty when Newton had the ball stripped near the try-line and Dobson made it level again.

Warrington thought they should have had time for one last scrum and a drop goal attempt in normal time to try to win the match, but Briers then missed in time added on although his accuracy in extra time was to prove golden.

Hull KR: Briscoe; Fox, Welham, Webster, Colbon; Cooke, Dobson; Fozard, Fisher, Newton, Galea, Murrell.

Substitutes used: Walker, Fitzhenry, Wheeldon, Aizue.

Warrington: Mathers; Riley, Grix, Bridge, King; Briers, Monaghan; Morley, Clarke, Carvell, Westwood, V.Anderson, L Anderson. Substitutes used: Higham, Rauhihi, Wood, Harrison.

Referee: P Bentham (Warrington)