John Cartwright has reflected on his side’s 46-4 defeat to Wigan Warriors on Friday evening.
The reigning champions put on a dominant show to take the two points back to Lancashire in Cartwright’s first match in charge of the Black & Whites on home soil.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Cartwright said: “We played against a really classy team that played some really attractive football. We had to be at our best physically and technically, and unfortunately we were nowhere near the mark. We looked like we were hanging on all game.
“There were a couple of turning points in the first half. Some of our kicks on the end of sets were pretty poor. We looked like we might be able to start putting a bit of pressure on them when the scoreboard was only 6-0.
“We came up with some early kicks; one went dead, and we got no results out of two other ones. We should have played play four and play five out and put pressure on them with a kick, but sometimes they work for you, and tonight they didn’t. They are key moments in the game, and you’ve got to nail them”
On the Warriors, he added: “Wigan took advantage of their chances. They are a very strong team. They’ll be there at the end of the year come Grand Final time. They compete hard, they do the little things well, and they’ve got class around the park. We weren’t quite where we needed to be.
“They were relentless in everything they did. You never want to play the premiers on the back of a loss, especially the first game of the year. They’re always going to be smarting, and they never want to lose two in a row. It’s not often that they do. They were at, I would say, physically and mentally, their very best. We challenged them at different stages but not long enough. We weren’t quite where we needed to be.”
The Black & Whites played in front of their highest number of home fans at a non-derby fixture in over eight years with a bumper crowd at the MKM Stadium, with Cartwright adding: “It was a fantastic crowd with a great atmosphere. They stayed there until the end. They saw a bit of fight at different stages, but the scoreline isn’t good enough. We’ve got to be better.”
Cartwright provided an injury update on Ligi Sao, who departed the field on a stretcher in the first-half with a serious looking leg injury.
“I won’t comment on it too much, but it didn’t look good when he went down the way he did, and he was stretchered off. He’ll get scans tomorrow (Saturday). It wasn’t pretty.
“I think he’s gone home. He was in a brace. He went home to get his leg up and on ice. That’s what we were told at half-time. We’ll know more on Monday.
Looking ahead to next week’s test against Huddersfield, he added: “Every week is important. You can’t afford to lose any games, so it will be the same if we had a win here. It’s a must-win game for us.
“They had a loss in the first round, and they will be very hungry. They will smell a win, so it’s going to be a big week for us next weekend.
“Our players are disappointed—no one wants to let a home crowd down like that. I thought the effort was there for a lot of the game. They’ve got some real freakish players that come up with some tries that only freakish players can do, but it’s no excuse for the scoreline. We’ve just got to be better.”
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