Paul Noone revealed this week how defeat to Hull in the play-offs caught him and his Warrington Wolves teammates totally by surprise.

Saturday's final whistle on the 2005 season left the players with unexpected decisions to make.

Back row forward Noone, who will be a part of Paul Cullen's squad again next season, said: "We didn't expect to get beat, and not by the 40-6 scoreline.

"We thought we'd be going on and playing Bradford this Saturday but it just wasn't to be.

"We were all talking in the dressing room afterwards about what happens next. None of us knew any plans for the following few days because we hadn't thought for one minute about losing."

Players' social events marking the end of the season did take place earlier this week as thoughts turned to a mix of booking holidays, preparations for international matches, surgery to repair damaged body parts, and off-season training programmes.

Noone said: "It's a long off-season now and there are things we have to do. Players need to rest, go on holiday, and get their bodies right in readiness for pre-season training and the next big year."

The fact that Warrington did crash out of the play-offs at the first hurdle was not due to lack of effort from the players.

Former Great Britain Academy skipper Noone said: "If you don't score points you're not going to win games and that was the problem on Saturday night.

"We broke through Hull's line so many times and attacked them on their try line but we just couldn't score, plus everything went Hull's way.

"Their first try was from an off-side position, another was an interception. We had two ruled out by the video referee and we were throwing passes on the floor. I just think that on the night nothing went for us.

"I think Paul Cullen summed it up afterwards when he said that for 28 rounds we were fantastic, but on Saturday night we came up a little bit short.

"We just need that little bit more in the tank to get through play-off games and to get to Grand Finals.

"Obviously we're not going to have Andrew Johns in the team next year but I think everyone has learned from Andrew while he has been here. I've learned a lot from him and he's been inspirational for me, particularly with him playing on the left and me being the left second row for each of his three games.

"Everyone will kick-on from this next year. We'll have another good season in 2006 and hopefully we'll go higher than our fourth place this term."

Widnesian Noone will be looking forward to 2006 more than anyone after much of his 2005 was disrupted by injury.

He went into the start of Engage Super League X as first-choice loose forward, stepping into the deep shoes of Mike Forshaw, but ended up hardly figuring in the position.

Noone said: "I just can't wait for next year. I had my eye injury before the season started and then two weeks after returning I injured my knee.

"I was out for about three months. I put a bit of weight on and Ben Westwood, plus a few of the other back rowers, were playing well and I couldn't get back in the team.

"Towards the back end of the season I started playing well and Cull (Paul Cullen) kept me in the side. So I just want to keep that going into next season, playing as I have been in the past three games and holding down my spot.

"A few months ago I was wondering what was happening about my situation for next season and it's brilliant that the club have said that they are going to keep me on for the option year that I signed.

"I've been here since I was 14, which is 10 years now, and I want to kick-on with Warrington as it feels like home to me."