Applegarth identifies issues to improve for the York Knights

The Knights provided the ideal response to their disappointing 38-18 defeat to Halifax Panthers the week prior, with Applegarth seeing plenty to be pleased by in York's win over rock bottom Dewsbury.

Whilst Applegarth was pleased by the result, there are still improvements to be made according to the Knights Head Coach, who expects to see errors rectified and discipline improved in the coming weeks.

Applegarth told BBC Radio York: “I was happy obviously that we got the win, I’ll be honest with you I was a bit filthy that we conceded two soft tries.

"I didn’t think that they were that well deserved, I think it was more of us having an off-play on the one-on-ones.

"That first try, we didn’t press hard enough on our try line.

"We did some nice stuff and we have spoke all year, since I’ve been here, about not wanting to compound a loss so we definitely got a response there.

"We’re under no illusions too that if we were playing, and this is without sounding too disrespectful to the opponents we played, if we were playing a bit of a better quality team further up the table, then it could have been a lot more difficult of a day."

Applegarth has identified the issues that he feels need to be dealt with, focusing on the transition of his play within his York team, and the discipline, which has been a damaging factor all season.

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The Knights Head Coach hopes to see these improvements made when his side make the overseas trip to Toulouse Olympique on Saturday (6pm).

“We need to be a bit tidier with our transitions, that first ten minutes we competed for a kick and they went 60 meters, which is a basic error that we shouldn’t really be making," Applegarth explained.

"Our discipline is getting better but it can still be a lot better, them sort of things that can turn the momentum of a game.

"When we’re playing a game where you’re playing an opponent that is just as strong as you, if not stronger on paper, then you’re going to make sure that you nail those moments.

"Getting momentum back into a game like that can be the difference between 10, 20 minutes worth of rugby.

"We’re looking forward to Saturday and testing ourselves, we’re under no illusions that we need to be better on those things.

"At the same time, we’ve still put 50 points on an opponent, we’re happy with that and we want to be chasing them better performances overall.

"To get those better performances, we’ve got to get those transitions and our discipline has to continue improving."

Individual player performances impressed the Knights Head Coach, who was happy with what he saw.

Debutant Jack Martin, who signed as an Australian prop having enjoyed previous spells with Wynnum Manly Seagulls, Cronulla Sharks and Ipswich Jets, had a 'solid' debut in the eyes of the Knights Head Coach.

Applegarth was also impressed by the performance of AJ Towse, who made his first appearance under the York boss, and Joe Law, who recently signed on a season-long loan from fellow Betfred Championship challengers Wakefield Trinity.

“I thought that Jack Martin had a really solid game, especially when arriving from a flight five days earlier from the other side of the world!

Debutant Jack Martin impressed Mark Applegarth on his first appearance for the York Knights. (Image: Craig Hawkhead)

"He does a lot of stuff that your average fan might not see, but as a coach and as a fellow teammate, they’d notice it.

"He mops up a lot of work and he’ll be a great addition.

"Joe Law slotted in great, as we knew he would, a great first touch getting his try.

"He was more looking at his movement in defence and making sure that that is where he needs to be.

"AJ, made his first appearance since I’ve been back, and I thought that he looked lively.

"There’s a little bit of work to do in terms of his defensive stuff, but overall with the ball in his hand he looked very dangerous indeed."