Widnes have got to hold heads up high, says Kieron Purtill

Widnes coach Kieron Purtill believes the club can be proud of their Wembley trip considering the state they were in earlier in the year.

The Vikings were in administration at the start of the season and faced going bust but the town rallied around the club and raised thousands.

Purtill believes the club needed their dream trip to Wembley, despite them tasting a 36-18 defeat to Sheffield.

Purtill told loverugbyleague.com: “We are disappointed at the result but I think when we sit back and reflect on the year we’ve had, we’ve still got to hold our heads up high and see where we’ve come from.

“We were nearly out of existence and to come out at Wembley was great and it was good for our fans who turned out in numbers.

“It was a fantastic day and they’ve been loud and followed us everywhere. We need to keep that going now, we need to get survival sorted in the league and then look to next year.

“What a great day out it was for the fans. Regardless of the result, they had a fantastic day out. Back in February, nobody would have dreamed of going to Wembley so those guys deserved the day out, but it was just a bit disappointing that we couldn’t give them the win.”

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