By Julian Shea

Cooke scored the winning try in last season's Challenge Cup final

Hull's Paul Cooke has hailed the appointment of coach Peter Sharp for reviving their season and making them prime contenders for the play-offs.

Under the former Paramatta boss, Hull have won 12 out of 13 games to rise to second in Super League and Cooke says it is largely down to his arrival.

"At our first video session he had us all on our toes, picking up things we'd not noticed before," he told BBC Sport.

"We all thought 'this guy knows what he's on about'."

Despite guiding the team to a 25-24 win over Leeds in last year's Challenge Cup final, John Kear's contract was not renewed in April after four defeats in five games.

But Cooke will not hear a word said against his former coach.

"As players we've got to shoulder some responsibility for John's departure," he said.

"It wasn't through lack of trying or anything, but maybe the club just thought it was time to bring in someone new."

He likes to play an attractive brand of football so we're just enjoying what we're doing and he likes that Hull's Paul Cooke

Under Sharp the personnel may not have changed much, but the playing style has - and Cooke says he likes it.

"The players who are there now are the same ones who played for John but we've been given a bit more of a free role to play a bit less structured," he said.

"He'll let you do what you want, and hopefully if it goes wrong, you can defend that - he won't have a go at you in videos.

"He likes to play an attractive brand of football so we're just enjoying what we're doing and he likes that - he'll defend us to the hilt if we lose a game because of that."

Last season's dramatic Challenge Cup win, masterminded by Kear and with the winning try scored by Cooke, laid the foundations for this season's success.

And Cooke says it has given everyone at the club hope of reaching this year's Grand Final.

Kear took Hull to their first Challenge Cup win in 23 years

"What last season showed is that the so-called big four don't have a stranglehold on the trophies," he said.

"Let's remember, we weren't supposed to even reach the final, being drawn with St Helens in the semis, but as a club we tend to defy odds.

"We've only one trophy to play for this year but we're in a healthy position.

"If we can finish second, it would be a cracking game if we can go to Saints, where we've already won this season.

"Wherever we finish this season, we'll be very confident we can get to the Grand Final.