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© PA Sporting Life Wakefield staged a storming second-half fightback to earn a draw against Super League derby rivals Castleford in a thr width="50%"illing Boxing Day friendly watched by 6,335 at Wheldon Road. Trailing 14-4 at half-time, Wakefield dominated the second period and tied the scores five minutes from time with a try by substitute Paul Handforth which was converted by debutante Steve McNamara. The young Tigers side, which included only a handful of first team regulars, were the sharp outfit in the opening 40 minutes. They took a 13th minute lead when prop Andy Lynch's powerful 30-yard run created a try for trialist winger Jamie Benn, who added the goal. Trinity hit back in the 27th minute when former Castleford centre Francis Maloney, making his Wakefield debut, sent fellow centre Adam Hughes tearing over. The Tigers regained control when cross-field passing by Gareth Dobson, Carl Briggs, Craig Wright and Ian Tonks put substitute Peter Reilly over. Benn kicked the conversion and also landed a penalty goal shortly before half-time to stretch Castleford's lead to 10 points. Trinity stormed back in the second-half. Their pressure eventually told when McNamara and Maloney put debutante full-back Steve Prescott over to narrow the deficit to six points. Teenager Handforth then popped up to force his way over for his late touch-down to ensure honours finished even. By Ian Laybourn, PA Sport Leeds Rhinos ushered in the new century with a revealing glimpse into the promised land. Coach Dean Lance included no fewer than 10 teenagers for Sunday's Super League friendly against Castleford and was sufficiently encouraged by their roles in a 26-14 victory to predict a brighter future for British rugby league. It is a generation since Great Britain last won a Test series against Lance's fellow Australians but the new Rhinos boss believes that the current Headingley crop of talent can help herald the dawn of a new era. "People ask me why Britain is so far behind the Australians but they're not," insisted the former Perth and Adelaide coach. "There is a wealth of talent here, which is testament to the work that has been done. We used a lot of young blokes today and they came thr width="50%"ough with flying colours." First-half tries from exciting thr width="50%"eequarters Karl Pratt and Chev Walker put Leeds on the victory path and, although it needed the experienced heads of Francis Cummins, Iestyn Harris and Barrie McDermott to finally polish off the Tigers, Leeds were also indebted to young guns like Kevin Sinfield, Gareth Morton, Mick Diskin and Jamie Jones-Buchanan. There was hope, too, for Castleford, who promised to pull off a surprise result despite being without 10 senior players when they led 12-8 at half-time. Tries from Richard Goddard and Craig Wright, two of the trialists seeking contracts, had overturned Leeds' early lead but the sin-binning of new signing Logan Campbell 11 minutes into the second half proved decisive. Assistant coach Graham Steadman, in charge until Stuart Raper arrives back from Australia, was delighted with the display of youngsters Dean Ellis, Jamie Benn, Andy McNally and Paul Wells in particular. "Things were looking rosy until the 60-minute mark," he said. "We've got some part-time players and it showed in the last 20 minutes." © PA Sporting Life Hull's hopes of their first victory at Castleford for nine years were wrecked by their former player Logan Campbell. The Kiwi centre, who recently joined the Tigers from Hull, grabbed the match wining try seven minutes from time after the sides were locked at 14-14 in tonight's Avec Challenge friendly. There was also a key contribution from Castleford's new signing Jamie Benn. The former York Wasps full-back scored a try and kicked four goals. Hull, whose starting line-up included 10 of last season's Gateshead team, paid dear for two dreadful second half errors which gifted Castleford tries. Benn put Castleford ahead with a fourth minute penalty goal and Hull got the opening try eight minutes later when Stanley Jene's high kick was palmed down by Ian Herron to David Maiden who went over. The Tigers regained the lead when Mike Eagar and Jon Wells set up the position for Brad Davies' well-judged kick to set up a 22nd minute try for Benn who added the goal. Castleford increased their lead thr width="50%"ee minutes into the second half when Hull's Maiden thr width="50%"ew out an awful pass near his own posts and Eagar pounced for a touch-down which Benn improved. Hull got back in the game seven minutes later when Matt Daylight capitalised on Will Robinson's kick to score at the corner. Castleford forward Ian Tonks was stretchered off with a leg injury before Hull levelled the scored when Robinson's superb pass sent hooker Mick Jenkins in for a 70th minute try and Robert Roberts tagged on the goal. But the Tigers got the edge when Daylight fumbled Aaron Raper's kick behind his own line and Campbell swooped for the winner. Benn added his fourth goal. Oldham St Anne's 8 Castleford 64 © PA Sporting Life Amateurs Oldham gave a commendable display but never looked like stopping the Tigers coasting into round five with a 12-try success. England prop Dean Sampson charged over for a hat-trick of tries while centres Michael Eagar and Logan Campbell and hooker Aaron Raper scored two apiece. The high spot for St Anne's came 10 minutes from the end when prop Martin Taylor went over to score their only try, goaled by Rob Rose. Brad Davis' long pass sent Eager barging his way over after only 10 minutes to spark the rout. Six minutes later Davis was again involved in the move for Sampson to put Andrew Purcell under the post for a debut score. Full-back Jamie Benn goaled both tries and Cas were in charge. Rose had a chance to put Oldham on the board but the Australian centre pulled a penalty attempt wide after 20 minutes. Cas ran in four tries, thr width="50%"ee converted by the superb Benn, to open a 34-0 half-time lead. Davis again carved open Oldham to give Campbell a try on his full debut, then Campbell turned provider to send his wing man John Wells over. Sampson punished a wilting defence by charging over twice in the final six minutes of the half. Within two minutes of the restart Davis strolled over untouched off a pass by Raper. But it sparked Oldham's best spell of the game. Outstanding hooker Steve Crowther and substitute Jason Akroyd were held just short and substitute Phil Russell got over the line only to be held on his back. Rose did give Oldham something to cheer on 53 minutes by landing a penalty. Sampson brought a scrappy period to life on the hour when he bulldozed his way over for his third try. It was followed two minutes later by the try of the game, superb handling in midfield from Davis, Eagar and Purcell opening the door for Raper to cross. Raper's second followed four minutes later but the real drama was yet to come and 10 minutes from the end Oldham prop Martin Taylor capped a six-man move to spark the biggest cheers of the day. Cas had the final say, however. Dale Fritz's break sent Eagar racing over for his second try, then full-back Benn took Sampson's pass to set up Campbell's second in magnificent style. By Andy Hampson, PA Sport. Halifax's Andrew Dunemann stunned Castleford with a late drop goal to send the Blue Sox into the last eight of the Silk Cut Challenge Cup. The half-back's effort crept over the bar to undo the Tiger's gritty fightback in a fiercely-contested encounter at the Jungle. The home side had battled back from a 10-0 deficit in the second half to come within a whisker of the quarter-finals. South African Jamie Bloem turned in an outstanding first-half performance to give Halifax an important early advantage but Cas refused to thr width="50%"ow in the towel. Yet for the second year running they were to suffer late cup anguish. Dunemann engineered the Blue Sox's opening try when he took advantage of the space created by the early sin-binning of team-mates James Gannon and Tigers' Dean Sampson. The stand-off's long pass was well taken by half-back partner Greg Florimo, who sent Bloem racing over in the corner after seven minutes. The Tigers enjoyed some long spells of possession as the half wore on but were punished for their lack of incisiveness by Bloem. The utility man, filling in effectively on the right wing, snatched a Dunemann bomb from under the nose of Darren Rogers to touch down and double his side's lead. Bloem was later sin-binned for holding down Rogers after thwarting Castleford's best attack and completed an eventful first half by missing a drop goal attempt from halfway. Martin Pearson had missed thr width="50%"ee goal attempts but saw Halifax go in at half-time with a useful advantage when he kicked a penalty. Cas made an immediate reply after the break with a Jamie Benn penalty but were made to work hard afterwards to breach the hard-working Halifax defence. Aaron Raper's grubber was hit too hard for Rogers as the Tigers tried to up the tempo yet it was Halifax who next came close as the video referee adjudged Dunemann to have fumbled the ball over the line. But the Blue Sox were later shaken by a nasty injury to Daryl Cardiss. The full-back stooped well to catch a Brad Davis up and under and was flattened for his trouble by Benn and was stretchered off. The incident was placed on report by the referee. Cas chiseled more off the lead with a further Benn penalty and then touched down thr width="50%"ough Logan Campbell. Benn's subsequent penalty raised the roof and made for a dramatic finish. However Halifax found equal resolve and Dunemann's kick in the closing minutes sank home hearts. Their last chance came and went when a sprawling Rogers failed to connect with another Raper kick.
By Ian Laybourn, PA Sport © PA Sporting Life Super League title favourites Wigan just about emerged unscathed from their venture into the Jungle after taming the Tigers in a game of wildly swinging fortunes. Former Castleford favourite Tony Smith was the Wigan hero, dashing in for a couple of tries, while Australian Test winger Brett Dallas set the near-9,000 crowd alight with an 80-metre effort. The Warriors just about deserved their win but they were given a searching early examination by their bogey side and were forced to endure a late scare, conceding four tries in the last 12 minutes. The Tigers won all thr width="50%"ee fixtures with Wigan last season and they looked capable of continuing the trend when winger Darren Rogers gave them a 14th-minute lead. The Yorkshiremen, lacking a trio of regulars, shook the visitors with some enterprising play from Aaron Raper and skipper Adrian Vowles and some forceful running from centres Michael Eagar and Logan Campbell. They also kept their star-studded visitors in check with some rugged tackling, notably from second rower Dale Fritz, and fully deserved the opening try, which came courtesy of a long cut-out pass from scrum-half Brad Davis. It took Wigan a quarter of the game to find their rhythm but when they did, they began to look every inch the championship favourites. They went in front thanks to two tries in seven minutes towards the end of the first half. Scrum-half Willie Peters grabbed the first, dummying his way past a flat-footed Lee Harland, and Smith then broke free of the shackles placed on him to brush aside the challenge of full-back Jamie Benn. Skipper Andy Farrell kicked both conversions to put his side eight points clear at the break but the score was tough on Castleford, who had dominated the half for long periods. Benn, who missed with his first two shots at goal, finally found the target with a penalty thr width="50%"ee minutes into the second half after Wigan were again pulled up for interference in the tackle but Castleford were once more undone by the old one-two from Smith. The stand-off got substitute Simon Haughton charging onto the ball and supported him to crash over for his second try and shortly afterwards combined with Farrell to get full-back Kris Radlinski racing over. Trailing 24-6, the Tigers were forced to thr width="50%"ow caution to the wind and they paid the price when Dallas gathered up a dropped pass on his own 20-metre line and, after sending Farrell away, raced up in support to take a return pass and register his first Super League try. Farrell took his goal tally to five from six attempts to make it 30-6 but the spirited Yorkshiremen produced a late rally that brought four superb tries. Rogers sailed over twice to complete his hat-trick, prop Dean Sampson romped over and Eagar was presented with a clear opening as Castleford tore the Wigan defence to shr width="50%"eds. It was five tries apiece in the end and the Tigers were left to rue the poor goalkicking of Benn, who could manage just two successes from seven attempts, compared to Farrell's five from six. Benn finally found the target with a penalty thr width="50%"ee minutes into the second half after Wigan were again pulled up for interference in the tackle. There was then a rare miss from Farrell, who was wide with a penalty after Castleford were caught offside, but the Warriors extended their lead with two further tries in six minutes thanks in no small measure to ex-Castleford man Smith. The stand-off got substitute Simon Haughton charging onto the ball and supported him to crash over for his second try and shortly afterwards combined with Farrell to get full-back Kris Radlinski racing over. Farrell kicked both conversions to stretch his side's lead to 24-6 with a quarter of the game to go. Report taken from the Sky Sports Website The City Reds were tipped to be this seasons’ wooden spoonists, but even though they lost today they showed enough skill and determination to prove that they do not deserve such a lack of respect. Castleford stormed into an 8-0 lead with early tries from Campbell and Rapier but Salford settled the storm and Offiah scored his fourth try in four games for his new club to conclude the game at half-time with Castleford only trailing by 10-6. Early in the second-half Salford made the game level with an early try by Tassels and there then followed a long period without any score with both sides nervous of making any mistakes. The Tigers, who did so well in Super League Four, seized the initiative late in the game with tries from Vowles and Davies. Salford replied with one late try but it was too late to make a difference to the result. An enthusiastic crowd of over 5,000 watched the match and Salford will no doubt cause more shocks as the season progresses. Scorers: The following match report is from the Sporting Life Website © PA Sporting Life Castleford Tigers produced a sizzling second half show to collect their first Tetley's Bitter Super League win of the season. Castleford swept into an 8-0 lead after only nine minutes with tries from centre Logan Campbell and hooker Aaron Raper. Craig Makin was at fault for Castleford's first try after losing the ball in a tackle with half backs Brad Davis and Danny Orr combining for Campbell to go over. Then Lee Harland and ex-Salford winger Darren Rogers combined for the lively Raper to squeeze in at the corner. Davis and Orr missed the kicks but Castleford looked in control. Salford had a chance to notch their first try when Michael Eagar knocked on from Martin Crompton's kick but the ball rolled dead with Martin Offiah in pursuit. But it was Offiah who put Salford back in contention when he raced onto a pass to go over in the 22nd minute and Simon Svabic tagged on the conversion to make it 8-6. Castleford landed a penalty just before the break when Brad Hepi, making his Salford debut against his old club obstructed Orr and Davis landed the penalty. Davis had a try disallowed for offside after Raper's clever kick in the 45th minute but Salford were immediately back on level terms with a well-worked try. Darren Brown, Paul Southern and Gary Broadbent combined for Australian centre Kris Tassell to go over but Svabic missed the difficult kick. Castleford regained the initiative on the hour when skipper Adrian Vowels forced his way over and then Davis made the points safe when he skipped round a tackle with substitute Jamie Benn landing the conversion to make it 20-10. Benn struck a second goal with a penalty four minutes from time but Salford refused to lie down with skipper Darren Brown providing the pass for Jason Webber to go over in injury time with Svabic landing the conversion. The following match report is from the Sporting Life Website © PA Sporting Life The Broncos had substitute Paul Davidson sent off as they slipped to their second Super League defeat in thr width="50%"ee games. Davidson was dismissed in the 69th minute for a high tackle on Castleford substitute Paul Smith. The Tigers scraped victory in an untidy game after being 10-6 up at half-time. Stand-off Danny Orr put them ahead by roaring thr width="50%"ough for a 10th-minute try but the Broncos struck back thr width="50%"ee minutes later. A crafty kick by Karle Hammond created a touchdown for full-back Greg Fleming which winger Brett Warton goaled. Orr went off with a leg injury after 19 minutes but the Tigers shr width="50%"ugged off his loss to regain the lead. Darren Shaw flung out a long pass to Dean Sampson whose pass was deflected off a London player for winger Darren Rogers to go in near the corner. Full-back Jamie Benn added the conversion. The Tigers stretched their lead to 12-6 10 minutes into the second-half with a penalty by Benn. But London hit back nine minutes later when Hammond sent Fleming in for his second score. Warton's easy conversion attempt hit the crossbar. Castleford's Ian Tonks was held up over the line before Davidson got his marching orders. Benn kicked the resulting penalty and was on target again in the last minute to seal victory for the Tigers. Castleford coach Stuart Raper was pleased with the way his side stuck to their task in driving rain in the 16-10 home win over London. Raper said: "To go thr width="50%"ough 80 minutes like that and not come away with the points would have been pretty tough." Raper admitted the first-half injury loss of playmaker Danny Orr affected his side's performance. "Because of the switches we had to make we could not execute a lot of our plays." London coach John Monie was disappointed with the outcome. "It was a game that we could have won if we had shown a bit more discipline and a better kicking game on the sixth tackle," he lamented. |
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