Crosfields head coach reacts to Challenge Cup defeat

The hosts, who ply their trade two divisions higher than Soap in the NCL Premier Division, were too strong for their visitors and ran out 28-0 winners in front of the BBC Sport cameras.

Crosfields, who were 22-0 down at the break, came up with an improved second-half display but had their most promising moment in the first period.

Lew Bani crashed over with the score at 16-0, but the try was ruled out for obstruction and Williams believed the decision hurt his side.

He also said Soap played too much “warm weather stuff” in soggy conditions on a heavy Mayfield Sports Centre pitch.

“For a big chunk of the game, we matched Mayfield. We were even the better side for parts of it,” he said.

“We created chances, but it was just a case of the final pass going astray, us choosing the wrong option or spilling the ball.

“The disallowed try hurt us as well, because they went straight on and scored again and that opened up a really big gap then.

“We really needed that try. That would have made it 16-6.

“I think the lads deserved a couple of tries out of it. A scoreline like 28-12 may have been a bit fairer.

“They are an outstanding team, who could play and they were bigger than us physically as well.

“I think tried to play a little bit too much warm weather stuff at times.”

While stressing his side defended well in the main, Williams also said some of the tries they conceded were “sloppy.”

Two of the hosts’ tries came straight from a scrum, something that was a particular annoyance to the Soap boss.

“They deserved their tries, but some of them were soft,” he said.

“We defended really well in the main. We’ve been working really hard on the push through the middle and on the slide in defence so we don’t get too exposed out wide.

“A couple of the tries were sloppy, but the second was very well-worked.

“I can accept tries like that because they are magic bits of play, but a couple were very sloppy.”