Cudjoe stars as Giants win

Leroy Cudjoe proved the Huddersfield hero as the Giants leapt up to third place in the Super League with a 32-18 victory over bottom side Harlequins.

Cudjoe ran in three tries as the Giants scored six touchdowns at The Stoop, with Lee Gilmour, substitute Eorl Crabtree and Graeme Horne also on the scoresheet, while Brett Hodgson kicked four goals.

But Quins refused to lie down and Chad Randall, Chris Melling and Tony Clubb scored tries, with Danny Orr notching three goals, but the Giants held on for a deserved victory in the wet conditions.

The visitors, still on a high after last weekend's comeback win over reigning

champions Leeds, took a fourth minute lead when Gilmour touched down after Jamie O'Callaghan had misjudged Kevin Brown's teasing chip.

Cudjoe then added a second try within two minutes after racing on to Brett Hodgson's superb kick to cross in the corner.

Bouyed

Buoyed by the return of full-back Hodgson from injury, it looked like a rout could be on the cards with only desperate goal-line defending stopping name-sake David Hodgson wriggling over in the left corner.

The home side seemed bereft of both confidence and attacking influence but a combination of slack passing and aggressive tackling kept the visitors at bay.

Quins slowly forced their way back into proceedings through sheer work-rate, but they rarely troubled the Giants' line in the teeming rain.

With five first-half minutes remaining, they fell further behind when Luke Robinson broke through the defence and his chip allowed Cudjoe to canter over for his second try on the evening.

But the home side gave themselves a lifeline right on the half-time hooter when - following some pressure close to the Giants' line - Randall burrowed over after David Howell was held just short.

Restored advantage

But the visitors restored their advantage four minutes after the break as Cudjoe completed his treble, again after a break from Robinson.

Five minutes later and the game was effectively over as a contest when Crabtree bulldozed his way over at the sticks, before Huddersfield added a sixth try with Horne breaking into space to touch down.

But Quins refused to give up and Chris Melling profited from a neat Randall kick to scurry under the posts.

And three minutes later, Melling burst through to enable Clubb to slide in at the corner and suddenly there was life in the contest.

But, being consistently penalised late on, the home side were unable to build up a head of steam and when Orr infringed, Hodgson kicked a late penalty to settle the Giants' nerves and confirm the win.