MARK Applegarth refused to single out impressive individual performances in York Knights’ 20-16 win over Hull FC – but he did express his delight with two veteran’s performances.
Applegarth’s side stormed to a third win on the bounce in their Betfred Super League season, adding to recent victories over Castleford Tigers and Huddersfield Giants to record a sixth triumph of the campaign.
At a scorching hot LNER Community Stadium, the Knights came from behind in the second-half to get a welcome win that propels them up the Super League standings.
The Knights head coach credited his team’s grit and character in his post-match press conference, but when asked to single out an individual performance that he liked, he hoped to instead recognise the efforts of all of his players.
But there were a few players who had standout moments for the boss, and two players who he felt contributed enormously thanks to their experience at the level.
“I thought loads of people stood out for different reasons, at different moments in the game,” Applegarth recognised.
“There was a tackle that sticks in my mind, where Nikau [Williams] came up with a massive tackle as Hull were shifting on us.
“You can’t hide away from Macca [Paul McShane], his experience, his leadership, and the same with [Paul] Vaughan.
“I played Vaughan for longer minutes than he normally plays, and he was running on an empty tank in the last five to ten minutes, but found a way to carry on going.
“I’m just really proud that we’ve got those two representing York, they are so important for us.
“It would be a bit unfair to single out too many, but you can’t hide away from your two older heads.”
One player who won’t be forgetting about the match any time soon is loanee Denive Balmforth, who scored a spectacular solo effort against his parent club.
The young star evaded numerous challenges from Hull FC players before grounding the ball just three minutes into the second-half, right in front of the travelling supporters.
Balmforth opted against too crazy of a celebration in front of them, which Applegarth said ‘summed up his character’, in a performance that delighted the head coach.
He enthused: “I was really happy for Denive, coming up against his parent club.
“That game and that win would have meant something to him.
“Denive’s a good lad and that’s what he’s all about, I think that it sums up his character.
“We just spoke about process, not points, to stay composed, do what we said we were going to do and stick to our plan.
“I thought we did that, we obviously got a bit of a try quicker than we thought we might, with it being the first set that we attacked.
“I’m happy with that, we showed some great desire, some great spirit and most importantly some really good grit.”
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