Finn rues missed chances in Fev defeat

Halifax Panthers’ head coach Liam Finn rued his side’s host of missed chances in their 36-16 Championship defeat at Featherstone Rovers, writes Adam Cheshire.

Despite a much-improved performance, Fax slumped to their fourth successive league loss with Fev’s Connor Wynne proving to be the difference with four tries.

However, three of the winger’s efforts came in an 11-minute second half spell after Fev’s Garteh Gale was sent off on the hour-mark following a clash with Tom Inman.

Fax had plenty of chances before, and after, the red card, but could only convert three of them through Greg Eden, Gareth Widdop and Joe Keyes.

Finn said: “I am obviously disappointed with the result and gutted because it was clear that everybody tried their absolute hardest, stuck together and we created more than enough opportunities. Ultimately, we lacked that little bit of composure.

“The last two weeks there has been a massive improvement and we have tweaked a few bits of our attacking game and given a little more clarity to everybody and that has started to bear fruit in the first part of it.

“But when you’re desperate for a win or desperate to score points you think you have to score then and there but you don’t. And Featherstone showed today that they didn’t have as many opportunities but when they did, they took them, and that’s the difference at this level between winning and losing.”

He added: “Before that, and after they went down to 12 men, we were creating opportunities and then you get really excited in that situation and force it and do something a little bit crazy which gives them not only the ball but the ball in a dangerous position and that’s literally what happened.

“We were chasing to get to within two or four points, made an error by forcing it, it falls into their hands, they get a little bit of momentum, get a penalty and then we were chasing our tail.

“They get one half-break, an offload through the line and all of a sudden you are behind your posts again. At that time of the game, I think it would have gone down as five opportunities to one - we took none and they took their one."