York Knights boss Mark Applegarth shuts down 'belong in Super League' talk after Wigan Warriors defeat
Mark Applegarth's pride in York Knights' performance could not mask his disappointment following Thursday's agonising 23-22 defeat at Wigan Warriors.
The Knights appeared on course for a shock win after racing into a 14-point lead, leaving Wigan sweating over their perfect record.
But Applegarth's side lost Ata Hingano to a yellow card just before the half-hour mark and paid a heavy price.
Liam Marshall scored twice in the half-back's absence to shift the momentum, with tries from Noah Hodkinson and Adam Keighran – plus a crucial drop goal from Harry Smith – completing the comeback.
Hingano added to the early efforts from David Nofoaluma and Paul Vaughan in the closing stages but York ran out of time.
"We've been on the right end of those results for a couple of weeks and it’s our turn to take our medicine," said Applegarth, whose team beat Hull KR and Hull FC by a point last month.
"But I'm really proud of the effort and application. We stuck to the plan for the majority of the game. Sometimes you've got to give credit to the opposition because in the second half they just really smothered us and dominated possession and territory. Ultimately it took its toll.
"We were brave but it's a valuable lesson for us. We came up with two one-on-one misses and didn't stick to our system for a try. That's 18 points.
"I'll never question my team's spirit, effort or application but we've just got to make sure we get those smarts. We were masters of our own destiny in terms of what went wrong."
Despite the nature of the defeat, the Knights continue to look at home in Super League.
Applegarth, however, is not interested in that narrative.
"I want to move on from whether we belong in Super League or not," he said.
"We're looking past that now. We're annoyed we've lost that game after putting so much investment into it.
"We've just got to learn our lessons and make sure we put them into practice next Friday."
Applegarth expressed concern over veteran star Paul McShane, who came off with a suspected fractured hand.
"We'll get him X-rayed and hopefully we'll get some good news on that," said Applegarth. "But it's probably 50-50."