DARYL POWELL has given his thoughts on Wakefield Trinity’s Golden Point loss to Featherstone Rovers this afternoon.
Trinity went down 14-10 after the two sides were locked at 10-10 after 80 minutes. Though both sides aimed up for drop goals, it was Gareth Gale that eventually won the game, picking up a loose ball and running 60 metres to break Wakefield’s hearts.
For Trinity head coach Daryl Powell, he was “disappointed” by the end result.
“It was old school, certainly the conditions were really difficult but it was the same for both teams,” Powell said.
“I thought our first-half was really poor and we didn’t want to kick the ball for some reason. Featherstone really controlled the territory with the slope and we really got into the game.
“They deserved that lead, we pegged them back in the second-half and we got a little bit more control but I never thought we were great.
“There were loads of errors and then we came up with a real dumb play at the end to give them the game. I’m disappointed in a number of areas but we know what the Championship is about now for sure.
“A few of our boys will have got a whack on the chin today but we need to be better as a team.
“I think even games we have won, we have generally talked at half-time about what we are trying to do to manage games. I don’t think we have found where we sit in a grove yet.
“It was one of those games that would always be a slug fest and the pitch will probably recover in August! I thought we handled it poorly and Featherstone deserved to win in the end.”
So why did Featherstone overcame Wakefield?
“I think it was about Featherstone managing the conditions better for more of that game. I lost track of how many times we kicked the ball dead. They had more repeat sets than us and their ball control was better than ours.
“If I’m honest, I think they had a bit more go about them and that’s something we need to find an answer to.
“The boys have got to step up quickly, we have a short turnaround against Bradford. We have taken a few whacks here today.”
Powell also named who he thought were two of Wakefield’s best players.
“I thought Thomas Doyle was our best player and Isaiah Vagana did well off the bench, he added some real go for us. I thought they were our best two players.
“It’s a long season, we’ve been playing Challenge Cup games since round minus two. It’s a crazy start to the season, but it is what it is.
“That’s been our first real stiff test and we didn’t handle it well. The Championship is our priority now, we have still got the 1895 Cup and that’s a realistic prospect for us.
“But, we won’t win much playing like that and the boys don’t need me to tell them to improve although I’ve done that already.
“Some of the boys we’ve recruited need to show us what we are really about now we are in the nuts and bolts of the Championship season.
“You don’t get many easy games at this level and we have got to get to grips with that quickly.”
Despite being poor for large parts of the game, Powell still feels Wakefield should have won once they levelled the scores in the second-half.
“There was a lot of effort out there but I just thought we played really dumb. We didn’t complete high, they dominated territory.
“You are trying to play your way up a slope. I think it’s a 10-12 point slope and that turned out that way but then we give it away t the end.
“I thought we should have won the game when we got back into it at 10-10 but then we made an error which was symptomatic of what we did today.”
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