Sheffield Eagles: Mark Aston disappointed with late season slump after impressive year

The Eagles were convincingly beaten by Swinton on Sunday, leaving Aston disappointed at ending a progressive season on a sour note.

Aston also hinted individual preparations behind the scenes were not up to scratch, as the Eagles failed to recover from a poor start which left them 20 points down in the first quarter.

On preparations, Aston explained to The Star: “It hasn't been where it needs to be. Certainly for me. Yes, I understand we are down on numbers but there are plenty of people who had their eye off the ball and possibly on other things.”

The defeat proved to be the last outing for two stalwart figures as Ben Blackmore and Pat Walker confirmed via social media they were leaving, with the latter retiring from rugby league. Further decisions are planned over the coming weeks as preparations for next season continue behind the scenes.

Aston continued: “We pride ourselves at being honest and respectful. I think that Wembley was the pinnacle and we played really well. From that I guess it is difficult at times to get them back to where you want them to be.

“We got to the occasion at Wembley, we really hit the mark. We haven't done since. Perhaps it was always going to be hard to get back up after that.

“We wanted to sign off correctly, but we signed off poorly.”