Radford keen to avoid repeat of 2013

Hull FC coach Lee Radford said the Black and Whites were rabbits in the headlights in 2013 when they lost the Challenge Cup final but is confident that won’t be the case again this weekend.

Hull FC take on Warringon at Wembley on Saturday in the Cup final. Three years ago they lost 16-0 to Wigan in the showpiece event.

Radford was then an assistant coach with the Black and Whites and said on that day the team “played the occasion”, not the game.

“If there were adverts for how not to tackle a Challenge Cup final, that was us back then,” he said.

“It’s voted the worst final in the history of the competition and that was a dark day.

“It was the epitome of playing the occasion rather than the team, because they weren’t crash hot either.

“It just never happened for us and some of the lads who were involved in that can use that experience and feed off it.

“I’m certainly going to highlight it to a couple of the lads who weren’t involved too.”

Radford is expecting an entertaining encounter with Warrington.

“There are two very evenly matched sides,” he said.

“Warrington play a very entertaining brand of football and, if I was a neutral, they would be a team I’d put the TV on to watch.”