GREAT day, great stadium; shame about the game.

That summed up the fans’ reaction as Huddersfield Giants’ Claret and Gold army poured out of Wembley into the warm North London sunshine.

They’d just seen their heroes humbled 16-25 by Warrington in the Carnegie Challenge Cup Final and were strangely muted.

It had all began so well with the mass exodus down the roadworks-littered M1 into London.

The streets around the stadium, the bars, the cafes, were awash with fans of all rugby league’s clubs.

And there was friendly, noisy banter as huge groups of Warrington and Huddersfield fans spewed out of the tube trains clanking into Wembley Park.

Inside the gleaming new Wembley, Giants fans painted their faces, waved their banners and took photos to remember A Great Occasion.

And then came the match. Nathan Brown’s men, usually so strong in defence, so sharp on attack, looked flat. Perhaps the occasion had got to them?

The fans rallied briefly when first Sean Lunt and then skipper Brett Hodgson crossed for first-half tries, but it was always Warrington who held the upper hand.

It meant glum faces at the end, but there was still a feeling that the club had progressed.

Simon Grant, of Dalton, was there with sons Spencer, 11, and Harry, 8.

"We are gutted, but we have had a great day. Wembley is awesome and the atmosphere was great for much of the time.

"It could have had a happier ending".

Giants "Babes" Yasmin Rejaei, of Beaumont Park, and Olivia Jackson, of Almondbury, both 16, were still smiling after the final hooter.

They’d had their faces painted and dressed in claret and gold and agreed: "What a fantastic day".

Yasmin said: "We’re disappointed that we have lost but it’s been great to come to Wembley and enjoy the day".

Olivia added: "We played well at times but we always struggled after going behind so early".

Giants’ fanatic Gemma Kaye, 26, of Newsome, was in the stadium with family and friends including nephew Hayden, 11, and brother in law Danny Richardson.

She said: "We came down on a coach today and it was a great feeling to walk up to Wembley. I thought Warrington deserved to win. There was a feeling the Giants felt they had got this far and that was it".

Danny added: "It has been a brilliant day, apart from the result. It would have been a lot better heading home had we won but at least we got here".

Karen Munro, of Shepley, and her two-year-old son Lachlan travelled down from Cardiff with family for the big day and relished the atmosphere long after the game ended.

"It’s been great but I’m gutted that we lost.

"We have really enjoyed the day and there were moments of the match to enjoy".

Referee Steve Ganson came in for stick from the Giants’ fans for some of his decisions.

Trevor Banks, of Lepton, backing the team with 10-year-old son James, said: "I don’t know why he disallowed those two first-half tries.

"But it’s been great to come down to Wembley, the stadium is fantastic and it’s just a shame we didn’t perform".

Those sentiments were echoed by Kevin Puckering and Helen Mervill, of Lindley, as they reflected on a long, ultimately disappointing day.

Kevin said: "I thought we were over-confident before the match and we did not seem as up for it as Warrington did. They were the better side.

"The referee, too, didn’t do us any favours. But what a great day and the stadium is fantastic".

And Ian Sykes, of Marsh, summed it up: "We got here, we enjoyed ourselves despite the score – and we’ll hopefully be back".