ANDY LAST was philosophical after Hull FC’s 42-6 defeat at Leigh Leopards.
Hull, who gave debuts to youngsters Ben Johnson and Lennon Clark in a much-changed side, competed well in the first half but fell away in the second.
“I’m immensely proud to be able to give a couple of young lads their debuts,” said Last.
“The first 40 minutes we stayed in the fight and it was tenacious, but unfortunately the second half just went away from us.
“They’re disappointed in there, but I know they’ve given a good account of themselves.
“It’s been a challenging day. It took us four and a half hours to get here (due to a traffic incident on the M62).
“We ended up with three HIAs in the first half (Jake Arthur, Will Hutchinson and Will Kirby all passed).
“We had to manage that and we managed it well, but we just didn’t quite have the energy in the legs in that second half.”
Last expects some senior players to return for Hull’s next game at Warrington Wolves on Friday, June 5.
“I’m hoping this gives the guys who need a break a bit of time to freshen up,” he added.
“Then we’re back into work and it’s a big game against Warrington – we’ll need to perform better than we did tonight.”