TIGERS captain Tom Brennan admitted “we just weren’t good enough” after crashing out of the KO Cup.
They were dumped 48-42 at home by Redcar at Ashfield on Tuesday night. It meant Tigers were comfortably beaten 101-79 on aggregate and Brennan was brutally honest after the home defeat.
He said: “Fair play to Redcar, they outrode us over the two legs. We just weren’t good enough.
“It’s a massive wake up call. We have made a great start to the season and reached one final in the BSN Series. But this is a kick up the backside big time.
“I’m not here to make excuses but the track conditions were so different tonight to how they usually are. They had to put so much water down because of the hot weather.
“It meant we just weren’t set up for the conditions at all. But it is the same for both sides, Redcar just committed themselves and had the right set-up.
“It’s a huge letdown for the fans. All the boys are gutted about that. We need to get our heads up ready for the start of the Championship league campaign on Friday.”
Team boss Cami Brown was also disappointed by their stuttering display.
He added: “Redcar were terrific and good luck to them in the semis. We were well beaten.
“We missed Ben Basso, losing him through injury yesterday was a big blow. But we have to pick up ourselves up now for Friday against Birmingham.”
Tigers 42: Tom Brennan 11+1, Chris Harris 11, Claus Vissing 9+2, Justin Sedgmen 5, Marcin Nowak 2, Ace Pijper 2, Lee Complin 2.
Redcar 48: Charles Wright 11, Danyon Hume 11, Danny King 6+1, Connor Bailey 6+1, Richie Worrall 5+2, Jake Mulford 5+1, Jason Edwards 4+2.
Images by Taylor Lanning.