A lot of people know that I am a lifelong Hull FC supporter, who also just happens to be an RFL-accredited journalist, so they will undoubtedly expect me to write something like this regarding the press conference I attended this afternoon.

Firstly, the human element, I am a human being, much the same as John Cartwright, both of us have feelings and emotions, the same as anyone else and, since he walked through the door 18 months ago, I have seen him and spoken to him regularly, got to know him professionally and gained a great deal of respect for him, so to hear him say that he felt a bit betrayed and disrespected by the club I have supported since I was a child definitely hurt me, personally.

Frankly, I can’t blame him for feeling that way, because I was absolutely stunned when I got the email last week for immediate release, informing the public of the shocking decision that had been made. It certainly wasn’t something that I saw coming.

To give an example of the dignity of the man himself and his professionalism, we now know that he was informed of the decision to relieve him of his duties the day after the Black & Whites had beaten Catalans Dragons, and yet there was absolutely no hint about it in his post-match press conference after the Hull Derby the following Friday.

When Carty picked out one particular person, by name in his press conference this afternoon, and revealed that there was a leak at the club, who had informed said person of who his replacement is going to be, saying he probably knows more about it than him, which is after all, the business we are in, but due to the gravity of the situation and because of my respect for the man who is now in the unenviable position of leading the team, despite knowing he is being shown the door at the end of the season, for me as a respectful journalist, and considering the human element here, it just felt absolutely wrong.

Yes, everyone loves a bit of sensationalism, but for me, as someone who has come to know and respect the man who was sat in front of us, I personally felt absolutely horrified for him, it felt like he has been put in a situation he clearly should not be in, he certainly deserves better from the powers that be and from the press, and I make absolutely no apology for that, except to John himself, because he clearly has been let down by those he should have been able to trust.

When I got to ask him some questions, I personally tried to keep the proceedings as normal as possible, asking him questions like what it had felt like having to let the feeling of another derby defeat fester for two weeks without a game, and regarding the potential 200^th Hull FC appearance for Brad Fash on Thursday night and if he’s more of a player to make sure a side doesn’t lose a match, rather than being a match winner, but of course, I couldn’t stay completely off the main topic, that is after all, my job as a journalist, I can only hope that he understood my questioning (he certainly answered them all, in his usual respectful and forthright manner) and I hope I can continue to have a good working relationship with him for the remainder of his tenure.

Being brutally honest, I tried to do my job to the best of my ability, and of course the whole press conference will be duly broadcast on YouTube and television and radio will have their preferred excerpts from it, but I just wanted to get the realistic side of this across, so I will thank you for reading this and hopefully understanding my reasons for writing it, and great respect to Nathan for allowing me to do this on his site, while I try and process my thoughts and feelings.

Written by Ian Judson (Site contributor & Hull FC fan)