Australian centre David Howell scored a late try for Harlequins RL as they beat fellow play-off contenders Hull 22-12 at a rain-lashed Stoop in Saturday's lone Super League fixture.

Howell's try settled a gruelling encounter in the home side's favour and afterwards Harlequins boss Brian McDermott said: "It was a great performance. The weather was always going to make it difficult to do what we wanted to do, and I always felt the side that made the least errors would come out on top.

"That was us, and the boys really had a point to prove after we shipped 46 points last week (against Huddersfield).

"Defences are so smart in the game today that you often have to make high risk plays just to get down the field, and they came off for us today.

"We have a group of players that treat the ball as though it's a bomb that may go off in their hands, but when it works it is great to watch."

The match was all square at half-time after Tony Clubb's try for Harlequins was cancelled out by Hull's Kirk Yeaman.

But the hosts pulled away through Jason Golden's try early in the second-half and, although Craig Hall replied for Hull, the London club went ahead again through a couple of Danny Tickle penalties before Howell's try set the seal on victory.

Despite this defeat, Hull were left fourth in the table to Harlequins' fifth place. But Hull coach Richard Agar was far from happy.

"We have to learn how to win tight contests like this, as we were poor in the second-half," he said. "It was a real 'roll your sleeves up and see who blinks first' game, and we were taught a real lesson."

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