YORK City Knights were always going to lose their first friendly of 2015 given they were up against a star-studded Hull FC side, and new boss James Ford had always said it was about the performance rather than the result.

The 62-0 scoreline at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster was therefore as unimportant as it was convincing.

Of more significance were the facts that the Knights actually got the game on – overcoming for now at least the community stadium wrangle which has left them homeless in their own city – and that Ford’s men showed plenty of spirit and togetherness in defeat, as well as nice touches, despite their disrupted pre-season.

All the old clichés of Super League players being better, faster, stronger than their part-time League One counterparts were to the fore, despite the Knights’ valiant efforts.

Hull had two fixtures on the day – the other being a preceding 29-28 win over hosts Doncaster in a Keepmoat double-header - but they played virtually all of their first-choice squad against York.

The likes of Leon Pryce, Mark Minichiello and Marc Sneyd donned the famous black and white jersey for the first time, with names such as Setaimata Sa, Mickey Paea, Gareth Ellis, Kirk Yeaman and popular former York try-machine Tom Lineham also starting.

Indeed, with the match being arranged as part of the compensation package after the clubs’ 2013 dual-reg partnership was ended prematurely, the Airlie Birds were contractually obliged to field a strong side, but it was still surprisingly powerful on paper – a line-up which might kick off the Super League season in early February.

Of course, it was meant to be a showpiece occasion for the Knights’ opening encounter at Bootham Crescent and the fact it was switched to Doncaster meant it cost the club an estimated £10,000; additionally the Minster city missed out on welcoming some famous names.

Nevertheless is still allowed the Knights to test themselves against, as Ford said, some of the world’s best. Now it’s about learning the lessons.

His side suffered an early blow as winger Jamel Chisholm - one of ten new faces on show - hobbled off without having had chance to display his famed speed.

As expected, Hull also gleaned the upper hand, Sa opening the scoring in the tenth minute.

York were soon given good position when Hull full-back Jordan Rankin dropped a kick in midfield, but the attacking set ended with a kick ricochet which spawned a length-of-the-field counter ending with left-winger Fetuli Talanoa touching down.

Kirk Yeaman finished a neat move, too.

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York boss James Ford was using the rolling subs rule quite liberally to make sure every one of his 22 men got decent time. Hull were more sparing with their interchanges, but made them count - Dean Hadley, one of four former Knights dual-reg players in Hull’s 19-man squad, coming off the bench and crashing over with his first touch.

York’s best move of the first half involved Ben Dent, Tyler Craig and Pat Smith, but it ended when James Haynes saw the ball knocked from his grasp - and Jamie Shaul, an unpopular figure at York on his brief dual-reg stint and a lowlight of that unsuccessful partnership, scored a superb solo try on the counter.

Lineham, the former York College student, finished the first-half scoring, making it 34-0.

For York, Jack Aldous, new boy Brad Nicholson and the returning Mark Applegarth had good stints up front and likewise Colton Roche stood out, while Harry Carter had some neat touches at hooker and Pat Smith some smart kicks.

Those factors combined to garner pressure at the start of the second half – two dropouts included in five successive sets deep in Hull territory.

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But, with fluidity only beginning to develop, they were unable to break through, and Hull went up the other end for Sa to cross again.

His hat-trick followed - an easy finish after Adam Dent had fluffed a high kick - before Talanoa added his second.

Shaul, such a letdown in a Knights shirt back in 2013, then showed his true class when completing a superb hat-trick with two more solo efforts, Sneyd finishing with nine conversions out of 11.

Knights: Nicklin, B Dent, Morrison, Aspinall, Chisholm, Haynes, P Smith, Applegarth, Carter, Aldous, Mallinder, E Smith, Roche. Subs (all used): Iley, A Dent, Craig, Glover, Nicholson, Joynt, Pickles, Bulmer, Leary.

Hull: Rankin, Lineham, Sa, Yeaman, Talanoa, Pryce, Sneyd, Paea, Houghton, Bowden, Ellis, Minichiello, Thompson. Subs (all used): Shaul, Cunningham, Bower, Wood, Hadley, Tyson-Wilson.

Tries: Sa 10, 50, 59; Talanoa 17, 63; Yeaman 24; Hadley 30; Shaul 38, 71, 79; Lineham 40.

Goals: Sneyd 9/11.