Challenge Cup: Hull KR 40-0 Salford - Rampant Rovers thrash dismal Red Devils

Hull KR cruised into the Challenge Cup quarter-finals after sweeping aside Salford at a wet and windy Craven Park.

Ryan Hall scored two tries to move to 323 for his career and 22nd on the all-time Great Britain list, four behind Shaun Edwards in 21st.

Jez Litten kicked 10 points while Joe Burgess, Kelepi Tanginoa, Peta Hiku, Matty Storton and Niall Evalds also scored tries for rampant Rovers.

Salford spurned a late chance for a consolation score from Deon Cross.

The evening began with an emotional moment's silence in tribute to Hull KR legend Phil Lowe who died this week aged 74.

The tone was set early and seven minutes in Ollie Gildart expertly fed Hall to race into the corner to put last season's beaten finalists ahead.

However, the former Wigan and one-time Salford centre Gildart was stretchered off following a collision in a tackle and was taken to hospital for precautionary tests on his neck.

After the lengthy stoppage, Hall doubled his tally with a dart down the whitewash on 21 minutes with Litten slotting the extras for a 10-0 lead.

Tim Lafai spurned the chance of a Salford reply with a mistimed pass and just after the half-hour mark, winger Burgess collected a delayed pass from Evalds to add a third against his former club, with Litten's boot making it 16-0.

Replacement Tanginoa crashed through a couple of tackles and dived under the posts to add a fourth try and Litten notched the goal and a penalty to make it 24-0 at the break.

On a night when nothing went right for the Red Devils they lost Ryan Brierley to injury after the turnaround before Hiku added a fifth try after chasing his own kick forward. Storton crashed over for number six, with Litten making it 34-0.

Salford, who beat KR in Super League less than three weeks ago, were punished for another mistake as Cross lost the ball in dreadful weather conditions when he looked destined to score and Evalds added a seventh try at the other end to seal it.

Willie Peters, Hull KR head coach, told BBC Radio Humberside:

"It was emotional before the game. We've lost a legend of the club and of the game [in Phil Lowe].

"We showed our DNA tonight. That's who we are and what we aim to do every week, we can't slip from that. Now it's the consistency to stay at that level every week.

"We're on the way up. It takes a lot to get there. The boys were all strong. We moved a lot of bodies around but it didn't look too disjointed."

Salford head coach Paul Rowley told BBC Radio Manchester:

"It was a bad start and it carried on from there. Hull KR played with a lot more purpose than us, which is disappointing.

"We just never got going. The lads always try to give 100% but sometimes it just doesn't happen, and it was one of those nights.

"We were beaten in every area of the fundamentals, which is generally running hard and being connected defensively.

"We knew where their threats were, there was nothing there that gave us any surprises, we were just disconnected from start to finish.

"It's not often we chuck up a performance like that, it's disappointing because we wanted to win the Challenge Cup and now we can't."

Hull KR: Evalds; Burgess, Hiku, Gildart, Hall; May, Litten, Sue; Parcell, Whitbread, Hadley, Batchelor, Minchella.

Interchanges: Opacic, Luckley, Storton, Tanginoa

Salford: Brierley; Ryan, Macdonald, Lafai, Cross; Cust, Sneyd; Dudson, Bourouh, Ormondroyd, Stone, Watkins, Shorrocks.

Interchanges: Vuniyayawa, Partington, Atkin, Wright.

Referee: Liam Moore.