1895 Cup

Ex Hull KR man praises former club following Challenge Cup triumph despite his side’s 1895 Cup loss at Wembley

by
Peter Smith
June 8, 2025

Ex Hull KR man Paul Cooke now Championship side Featherstone Rovers head coach

There was joy and despair for former Hull KR player and current Featherstone Rovers coach Paul Cooke at Wembley on Saturday.

Cooke was delighted for the Robins, whom he has supported all his life, after they ended a 40-year trophy drought by beating Warrington Wolves 8-6 in a thrilling Challenge Cup final.

But he admitted Hull KR’s win didn’t make him feel any better about his own side’s 5-4 loss to York Knights in the following 1895 Cup decider.

“We can learn some lessons from that,” Cooke said of Hull KR’s last-gasp victory. “They were almost never over the line until the last moments, but big game players come up with big game plays, and they did in the end.

“Mikey Lewis’ kick from almost the sideline was a huge moment in a huge game and the best players ice those.”

Cooke added: “I am really pleased for (owner) Neil Hudgell, who I text pre-game and Willie Peters and the rest of the group: Dean Hadley in particular and Jez Litten, who came from Hull FC and were finding it difficult to get in there.

“I am really pleased for everybody. There’ll be some sore heads in East Hull and some black and whites cursing that they are over the ‘since 1985’ tag. It’s very similar to 2016 when Hull FC won at Wembley. It’s fantastic for them, but it’s still going to take me some getting over Featherstone’s loss.”

Ex Hull KR man rues missed opportunities amid 1895 Cup loss

Featherstone led 2-0 early on, were 4-2 behind at the break and levelled the scores with 20 minutes left, only for Liam Harris – a former Hull KR player – to kick them to defeat in sudden-death extra-time.

“I was disappointed with the first half performance,” Cooke admitted. “I thought we started the game well and then just went one-out, and that’s not the team we coach.

“I am disappointed we’ve lost the game, ultimately – if we win that 5-4 in golden-point, I am sitting here ecstatic.”

Featherstone paid the price for failing to attempt a drop goal late in normal time, opting to run the ball instead when they seemed to be set up for what could have been a winning kick.

“There’s some really harsh lessons in there for us,” Cooke stressed. “Somebody’s going to get a hard time for it, because we had ample chance there.”