THE irony of Hull FC’s first game under interim coach Andy Last being at Castleford Tigers is not lost on the man himself.
Last is in the hot seat at the MKM Stadium for the second time, if only for the remainder of this season after John Cartwright’s departure and before Steve McNamara’s arrival.
And his quest to repeat the feat of 2020, when he steered Hull into the play-offs, begins at the only club he has been permanent head coach at.
His five-month spell in 2023, after stepping up from assistant when Lee Radford left, yielded just four wins from 19 games.
“It was a difficult time when I was head coach at Castleford – it didn’t quite go according to plan,” said Last.
“I know supporters weren’t overly happy with my appointment and we didn’t get the wins we needed.
“It’s all about winning, that’s the biggest lesson I learned at Castleford. We trained hard, the playing group really bought into what I was doing, but we just didn’t get enough wins.
“The stuff on the training field just wasn’t transferring. You can be the most disciplined, hardest-working coach in the competition but if you aren’t getting results it doesn’t matter.
“In the period at Castleford I was working really hard, we were organised and disciplined. The feedback from the playing group was we couldn’t do any more for them.
“But it wasn’t transferring into results at the weekend, and I suffered the consequences of losing my job.
“One lesson I learned about myself was being able to deal with adversity. There were some really low days, but you have to go out and front up in front of the press and in front of the players, and show the group I’m confident. That’s something that, looking back, I did do well.
“And when I did leave my position, I spoke to the players with poise and clarity. I’m pleased they didn’t go down.
“It was a really tough time but I learned a lot about myself.”
Since escaping relegation danger that season, the Tigers have been purchased by businessman Martin Jepson and have designs to rise up the table.
“I’m pleased that Castleford seem to be on a sound footing now,” added Last.
“They’ve got an owner who has invested heavily in the infrastructure at the club and Ryan (Carr, head coach) has been able to sign some good players and build a squad.
“(Director of rugby) Chris Chester, who I played with at Hull and worked with at Wakefield, has done a good job on the recruitment front.
“I’m anticipating a warm reception from the Castleford supporters, shall we say, but it was a club I enjoyed working for because of that passion.”