Daniel Anderson expressed sympathy for Paul Sculthorpe after his Challenge Cup final ended inside two minutes.
Agar hails Horne's bravery after cup comeback
St Helens coach Daniel Anderson expressed sympathy for Paul Sculthorpe after the club captain's Challenge Cup final ended inside two minutes.
Sculthorpe was helped off the field with a suspected dislocated shoulder after an innocuous-looking tackle.
The former Great Britain skipper has endured an injury-ravaged three years but had battled hard to prove his fitness and make a first Wembley appearance.
With the club not renewing his contract at the end of the season, he may now have played his last game for St Helens after 11 years' outstanding service.
Anderson said: "It was a horrible injury for him to sustain so early in a big game. We'll try and console him, he is quite shattered at the moment."
Full-back Paul Wellens, who was awarded the Lance Todd Trophy as man of the match, said: "I'm shattered for him.
"I've played with him for a long time. For the success he's had he's the most level-headed down-to-earth guy.
"We'll have a beer for him and try to put a smile on his face. Hopefully it's not as bad as first feared but that's rugby league and Scully's a tough guy, he'll deal with it."
Scare
Anderson admitted his side had given him a scare before pulling through to win a third successive Carnegie Challenge Cup final 28-16.
The Australian said: "We almost found a way to lose. I thought we squandered ample opportunities in the first half, we had genuine try-scoring plays.
"I had a real bad feeling at the start of the second half, I thought it was going to come back to bite us.
"We are a very good front-running team but I knew the first try would provide momentum for Hull.
"Credit to us. We were honest for 80 minutes and I think that got us through.
"It was a tough game, I don't think people realise how much the first half took out of us."
Hull coach Richard Agar hailed the bravery of scrum-half Richard Horne after his side's defeat.
The 26-year-old played for over an hour in his first appearance after four months out with a career-threatening neck injury that saw him lose nearly two stone in weight.
Horne was also dropped on his head by James Graham within seconds of his introduction from the bench.
Effort
"I thought his effort after what he has come back from, in a game like this, was enormous," Agar said.
"That (the Graham tackle) might have been the best thing for him and I think it would have done his confidence the world of good.
"He got himself up and shook himself down. It was there for everyone to see how underweight he was and his fatigue at the end of the game cost us a little bit."
As for the match itself, Agar added: "We know we can compete on the big day against the good teams.
"It was there for all to see that we have makeshift players at half-back. This is our third final in four years and there's no reason we can't come back.
"We need to remember this and how it feels and we can't be happy with a brave effort. Next time we come back we want to win the game.
"I think it's indisputable that we gave it everything. I thought we showed tremendous commitment to each other, we were down 10-0 but managed to haul ourselves back into the game."
