‘I was not slating the team’ - Jaymes Chapman clarifies comments after Dewsbury Rams suffer ‘uncharacteristic’ 1895 Cup defeat at Keighley Cougars

Chapman, who confirmed he conducted his post-match interview duties just “30 seconds” after delivering his verdict to the players in the dressing room, claimed to the club’s official media it was the “worst” performance he had seen from a Dewsbury Rams side.

Clarifying his comments to the Reporter Series today (Monday), Chapman admitted:

“Emotions were running high. I want to right some wrongs. The coaching staff takes full responsibility. It’s not a blame game but we can only do so much as we are not on the pitch.

“I stand by the majority of what I said. Obviously emotions were in place. It was only 30 seconds after we had been in to speak with the lads. I was not slating the team. I was just pointing out what 95 per cent of the fanbase saw.

“It was massively uncharacteristic in our approach to the game. In the first 20 minutes we were in the arm wrestle and we showed what we are massively capable of with the try down the middle from Matt Garside. That style of rugby is what we have been training for over the past three months and we will continue to do so.

“But I know exactly what we are capable of and I know the majority of our fanbase know what we are capable of as well.”

And Chapman believes the performance was “an off day.”

He said: “We are going to get a couple of these games this season because all teams do. Even St Helens in Super League have an off day. It was an off day for us, that’s all. I have got full confidence in our team and our capability.

“They are massively easy fix-ups. The game just got away from us and we started to play a game of rugby that we had not trained for and we went into panic mode and started to go away from our own game plan and strategy.

“Once that happens, it is really difficult to get back. We had a reset at half time and got ourselves back into the arm wrestle for ten minutes but then went back to our old ways from the first half.

“By that time the game had got away from us.”