York will travel to Wembley Stadium for their AB Sundecks 1895 Cup final on Saturday (5.30pm), with a match against Featherstone Rovers deciding who will be crowned champions of the competition.
It’s a chance for Applegarth to win his first trophy as Knights Head Coach, in the same year that he celebrates his one year anniversary with the club.
Whilst the Head Coach acknowledged that it would be a tremendous feeling to win silverware with the Knights, he was well aware that it would be no easy task against a tricky Featherstone team that defeated York in mid-April.
Applegarth also knows that winning the trophy will earn his players deserved recognition, but he does not wish to see his team instead become ‘happy losers’ in the experience of a cup final.
“I would be really proud, and I’m proud that the team has been able to get there – but it means nothing if the team doesn’t perform.
“There’s one more to go yet, we’ve not hid away from that message, we don’t just want to be happy losers.
“We’re going down there to do a job and we have 80 more minutes to fulfil that job.
“I’m a bit boring, I’m just going down to get the win – that’s all I’m bothered about!
“It’s an experience, but it’s only a good experience if you get what you want.
“It’s good to see the players get the credit that they deserve, but I also know that the players are very similar to me and that they’d rather get the win than the great experience.
“We’re in the business of winning and we get judged on results.
“You could tell me that you had the worst experience of Wembley but still got the win, or had the best experience of Wembley but got a tough loss – you’d pick the win every time.
“We’re enjoying the occasion, but we’re also not losing sight of why we are going down there.”
Lifting the 1895 Cup would be Applegarth’s first trophy as the Knights Head Coach, a moment which would surely bring great pride on a personal level.
Instead, Applegarth admitted that he would be more proud of seeing his players enjoy the moment than himself, eager to see his squad ‘fulfil their potential’ at Wembley Stadium.
Applegarth confessed: “I genuinely mean this, I’m not in rugby league for personal accolades.
“It’s all about the group, and one thing I really love about the York playing group is how close they all are.
“It will probably mean more to me to see them getting the credit they deserve, for the work that I know they have been putting in since November.
“They are so tight and I know that they go above and beyond, it’s one of the best groups I have ever been involved in from a playing and coaching perspective.
“I’ll be more proud to see them get the credit that they deserve.
“I’m not in it for personal accolades as a coach, I enjoy coaching to help groups fulfil their potential.
“That’s the most exciting thing for me on Saturday, it’s a chance to see the group get recognition for what they do.
“We’re under no illusions though and we know that it won’t be gifted to us, we’re going to have to work for everything.”
