Super 8s Qualifiers: Batley 28-58 Huddersfield

Ryan Brierley has now scored 13 tries this Super League season

Half-back Ryan Brierley scored a hat-trick of tries to help Huddersfield to a comfortable 58-28 win over Batley in the third round of the Super 8s Qualifiers.

Brierley was in the Leigh side that suffered a shock defeat at Mount Pleasant on the opening day of the Championship season but revelled in the open spaces this time as the Giants took another step towards securing their Super League status.

Batley had no answer to the power and pace of their visitors and have now conceded 192 points in their three games after leaking 76 and 58 in their opening matches at Hull KR and London Broncos.

The Bulldogs, who had been expected to be more competitive on home soil, trailed 48-2 after conceding nine first-half tries.

The hosts actually took the lead with a third-minute penalty for offside but it was plain sailing for Huddersfield once England centre Leroy Cudjoe dummied his way over for the game's first try three minutes later.

Playing down the pronounced slope of the Fox's Biscuits Stadium, the Giants dominated at will, with Jamie Ellis dictating play in the absence of the suspended Danny Brough on the back of an impressive pack performance.

Ellis' cut-out pass got winger Gene Ormsby in for a second try and hooker Ryan Hinchcliffe broke through the middle of the Bulldogs defence to get the supporting Eorl Crabtree over.

Second rower Tom Symonds punished an error by winger Alex Brown, who fumbled Ellis' towering kick, to go over for the first of his two tries midway through the first half before full-back Jake Connor dummied his way over.

Batley had no answer to the creativity of Ellis, who got his side into a perfect attacking position with a 40-20 kick and from it sent centre Joe Wardle through a gap in the home defence for a try.

Connor then demonstrated his attacking threat from the back by getting Brierley over for two tries in the last 10 minutes of the first half and Ellis kicked his sixth goal to make it 48-2 at the break.

The home side were much improved in the second-half, no doubt after a roasting from coach John Kear, and built pressure on the Huddersfield line thanks to a succession of penalties.

Hooker James Davey fluffed a great chance when he lost the ball over the line but centre Shaun Squires stole the ball from Giants winger Aaron Murphy to score their first try on 53 minutes and shortly afterwards full-back Dave Scott jinked his way over for a second.

Dominic Brambani added both conversions to trim the visitors' lead to 48-14 but Cudjoe scored straight from a scrum on the hour to bring up the half-century for his team.

Huddersfield certainly found the going much tougher uphill and they conceded another try when Murphy failed to clear the danger caused by Brambani's clever kick to gift Squires with his second try and Brambani kicked his fourth goal.

The Bulldogs were pressing again when Brierley pulled off an interception to sprint 80 metres for his third try 10 minutes from the end, but Batley never gave up and their perseverance was rewarded with further tries from centre Chris Ulugia and Scott, both created by Alex Brown.