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Mike Eager, Castleford's winter capture from Warrington, grabbed a try on his Wilderspool return but could not stop his new side slipping to their first defeat of the season. The Australian centre grabbed a try early in the second half to put Castleford ahead 10-9. But Warrington rallied to wipe out the memory of last Sunday's Silk Cut Challenge Cup thrashing at Bradford Bulls. Warrington went ahead 4-0 in the 27th minute when man of the match Toa Kohe-Love went over but Lee Briers missed the goal. Castleford went in front on the half hour with Brad Davis and skipper Adrian Vowles combining for Richard Gay to touch down and Danny Orr converted. Ian Knott's first try of the season restored Warrington's lead before Briers chipped in with a dropped goal to make it 9-6 at the break. Castleford suffered a blow before half time when Orr was carried off with knee trouble after being injured in a tackle. Eager's try gave Castleford hope but then Kohe-Love stormed over for his second try and Briers sealed the match on the hour with a try he converted. Castleford never gave up but suffered another blow when prop Dean Sampson went off four minutes from time with a leg injury. Davis grabbed Castleford's final try in the 78th minute and they missed a chance to score what could have been a winning try when Jason Flowers dropped a pass from Darren Rogers. Castleford suffered a third injury blow, with hooker Aaron Raper going off just before the end with an elbow injury. Coach Stuart Raper said: "Danny Orr looks the most serious doubt for the (Challenge Cup) semi-final, with Dean Sampson suffering a twisted ankle." By Ian Laybourn, PA Sport Richard Branson's long-distance telephone call brought him the news he was dreaming of - that he will lead London Broncos out at Wembley on May 1. The Virgin boss was forced to miss the Broncos' finest hour because of business overseas, but two other famous Englishmen - rugby league legends Shaun Edwards and Martin Offiah - ensured the first Wembley appearance in London's chequered 19-year history. Both former Great Britain stars grabbed tries to help the Broncos to a memorable success in a simply breath-taking Silk Cut Challenge Cup semi-final at Headingley. Edwards fell to his knees at the end of a gripping finale as he contemplated a record 11th Wembley appearance. But the real hero was forward Steele Retchless, who scored the match-winning try in injury time. Extra-time was looming following Danny Orr's successful 79th-minute drop goal that tied the scores at 27-27, but there was yet more drama to come before the final whistle blew. Retchless had already been announced to the 7,561 crowd as man-of-the-match for a superb all-round performance when he sold an outrageous dummy to cross for his side's sixth try to break the deadlock. Three Castleford tries in the 13 minutes had set up the nail-biting finish as the Yorkshiremen took the lead for the first time. But London held on for their historic victory, much to the relief of Offiah, whose first-half gaffe could have proved so costly. The dramatic game was in danger of being remembered for the controversial first-half penalty awarded to Castleford after Offiah failed to read referee Stuart Cummings' signals. The former Wigan legend successfully defused a Brad Davis 'bomb' and, believing he was over his own try-line, casually tossed the ball to Edwards for a restart on the 20metre line. But Cummings clearly believed the winger was inside play when he leapt for the ball and had no option but to rule Edwards offside. Danny Orr's successful penalty opened the Tigers' scoring, but Offiah was to more than make amends for his howler. The London fans were outnumbered seven to one but they made up for their lack of quantity with their vociferous support - and they had plenty to shout about. Inspired by half-backs Edwards and Karle Hammond - who have 11 Wembley winners' medals between them - the Broncos were good value for an early 14-2 lead after scoring three tries in 15 minutes. Hammond grabbed the first after 10 minutes, taking Edwards' pass 10 yards out and squeezing through the tackle of Danny Orr and Darren Rogers. Former All Black centre John Timu then raced on to a fine pass from the impressive Retchless for Offiah to touch down, and livewire hooker Robbie Beazley dived between the bodies of defenders Jason Flowers and James Pickering for a third try. Brett Warton could land only one of his three shots at goal, though, and Castleford hit back to cut the deficit to just two points by half-time. First, centre Francis Maloney made ground after taking Orr's pass, and winger Richard Gay sidestepped past full-back Tulsen Tollett to touch down. Then Michael Eagar finished off a splendid move involving Aaron Raper, Dean Sampson and that man Orr. A Beazley drop goal gave the Londoners some breathing space, and when Edwards supported a break by Warton to touch down on 54 minutes and his accomplice kicked his second goal the game looked to be going the Broncos' way as they led 21-12. But Rogers' 60th-minute try, the result of a lucky rebound after Sampson's pass appeared to be going astray, sparked an incredible Tigers fightback. Video referee David Asquith was called on to rule that Gay touched down from Orr's pass on 64 minutes, and when Eagar - who had had a third-minute score disallowed by the fourth official - grabbed his second try eight minutes later, Castleford were in front for the first time. The game then swung back London's way when veteran forward Peter Gill forced his way over wide out, and Warton landed a brilliant conversion. But, in a game that saw yet more twists and turns, Orr looked to have taken the tie into extra-time before Retchless deservedly had the final say. Hammond had his drop-goal attempt charged down. But Offiah was on hand to regain possession, and as the seconds ticked away tough-tackling Australian Retchless still had enough energy to barge through a tiring Tigers defence for a score that sent the Broncos fans wild with delight. Castleford bounced back from their Challenge Cup semi-final heartbreak with a narrow Super League success at home to the Blue Sox. Tigers' match winner in a pulsating encounter was centre Michael Eagar, who scorched over for his third try of the match just five minutes from time. It was Castleford's second win in three Super League starts and it piled on the misery for Halifax coach John Pendlebury, whose side have won only one of their last four games. Halifax made a bright opening but Castleford survived the onslaught and, inspired by second rowers Lee Harland and Dale Fritz and man-of-the-match Aaron Raper, started to look menacing. They broke the stalemate on 17 minutes when a swift cross-field move ended with Eagar forcing his way through a posse of defenders. Halifax half-back Graham Holroyd sent winger Damian Gibson sliding in at the corner on 31 minutes but referee John Connolly ruled the final pass was forward. And Mr Connolly made two crucial calls a minute later when he penalised home fullback Jason Flowers for a high tackle then sent team-mate Brad Davis to the sin-bin for a professional foul on Gavin Clinch as the Australian looked to take a quick tap. Halifax made the extra man count inside two minutes when winger Nick Pinkney crossed after some superb play by centre David Bouveng. Advantage swung Castleford's way on 45 minutes when Adrian Vowles' superb inside pass opened the door for Eagar. Danny Orr's angled conversion put the home side 10-4 ahead. But the Blue Sox, bolstered by a string of penalty awards, showed spirit to trim the lead with a penalty from Clinch then levelled the scores on the hour with an unconverted touch-down from substitute Andy Craig. But Cas had the final say in the 75th minute when a crunching man and ball tackle from prop Dean Sampson dislodged the ball from the grasp of winger Oliver Marns. Vowles was first to react and create the opening for Eagar to slide in at the corner to clinch the point. Play was held up for several minutes while Marns was stretchered from the field in some discomfort. Huddersfield 14 v Castleford 36 By Ian Laybourn, PA Sport Castleford hit new heights as they moved into Super League's top five while at the same time adding to Huddersfield's misery. The Tigers, whose fourth place represents their highest position in four years of Super League, were the last team to lose to Huddersfield in Super League but that was 10 months ago and Stuart Raper's men are a different prospect these days. Superbly led by loose forward Adrian Vowles, they displayed crisp handling and incisive running to rip Huddersfield apart on the fringes, with pacy three-quarteres Michael Eagar, Francis Maloney and Darren Rogers all grabbing two tries apiece. Despite experiencing 16 straight defeats since that success at Wheldon Road, Huddersfield showed plenty of spirit in the early stages and at one time forced the visitors to drop out from their own posts three times in quick succession. But the Giants lacked penetration and classy Cas gave them a lesson in finishing when they cut loose with three tries in five minutes of delightful football. Eagar burst through for the first, the outstanding Vowles raced clear to set up Maloney and then Eagar finished off a sweeping move that spanned 60 metres and involved half a dozen players. Having scored just six tries in the whole of 1998 for Warrington, Australian Eagar has now touched down nine times in seven games for the Tigers. That 14-point scoring burst put the Tigers 20-2 in front and things looked bleak for Huddersfield when the influential Bobbie Goulding limped off six minutes before half-time. But Malcolm Reilly's men threatened to stage a remarkable fightback with tries from Jim Lenihan and substitute Nigel Wright either side of half-time, the second coming while Huddersfield forward Nick Fozzard was in the sin bin for obstruction. With Craig Weston taking over the goalkicking and landing his first two efforts, Huddersfield closed the gap to eight points. But Maloney eased the Tigers' growing anxiety when he raced in for his second try after Huddersfield skipper Danny Russell lost possession in James Pickering's hefty challenge. And Castleford emphasised their superiority with two further tries in the last six minutes through Vowles and Rogers. By Steven Baker, PA Sport Andy Gregory's grip on the Salford coaching post was loosened further as Castleford came from 11-0 behind to send the Reds crashing to their fifth straight defeat in Super League IV. Michael Eagar's ninth try in five games started the Cas fightback and they always looked in control as they cemented their position in the play-off places. It means Salford have lost nine League matches in a row, having been beaten in their final four games of last year, and the result again puts a question mark over Gregory's future. He insisted his position at The Willows helm was secure after recent crisis talks with chairman John Wilkinson but many more scorelines like today's could bring his spell in charge of the Reds to a close. Cas, though, have bounced back wonderfully well following their last-minute Challenge Cup semi-final defeat at the hands of London a fortnight ago, with victories over Halifax, Huddersfield and now Salford propelling them into the top five. It had all started so well for the Reds, Stuart Littler going over after four minutes following good work by Hudson Smith. They were 10-0 up on 12 minutes, Neil Baynes grabbing an opportunist try after Cas had failed to deal with Mark Lee's kick through and Steve Blakeley adding the conversion. Carl Briggs then slotted over a drop goal but even though they were trailing, Castleford looked the more dangerous in possession as they tried to spin the ball wide whenever they could. They got their first points of the afternoon on 30 minutes, Danny Orr sprinting through a hole in the Salford defence created by the onrushing Briggs before sending Eagar over. Orr landed the conversion from the touchline and the 20-year-old stand-off also added the extras on the stroke of half time after Adrian Vowles had provided the pass which enabled Richard Gay to touch down. The Tigers started the second half in the same vein that they finished the first, Francis Maloney galloping over between the posts and Orr slotting over the conversion. He kicked his fourth goal after Lee was sin-binned for laying on in the tackle but Salford defied the one-man handicap to get back in contention when Joe Faimalo touched down following good work from Blakeley, who added the goal. Ian Tonks' penalty extended Castleford's lead after Smith was placed on report for an alleged high tackle on Orr, who then added a drop goal 10 minutes from time. A brilliant break from Orr enabled Jason Flowers to seal the win with a try eight minutes from time and Tonks' simple conversion rounded off the scoring. © PA Sporting Life New boys Gateshead continued their climb in Super League with their first ever away win. They notched their third victory in their last four matches and ended Castleford's three-match winning sequence after building a decisive 14-4 interval lead. They made a dream start when a superb pass from skipper Kerrod Walters put full-back Ben Sammut in for a third minute try which Ian Herron goaled. Castleford's Danny Orr went over from Darren Rogers' pass in the 19th minute but the touch-down was disallowed by the video referee who was called on to adjudicate five times in an incident-packed encounter. Gateshead made it 12-0 in the 22nd minute when the video ref awarded a try after Willie Peters' high kick created a score for loose forward Tony Grimaldi and Herron added his second goal. After a 33rd minute flare-up referee Robert Connolly put the incident on report. The Tigers reduced the deficit to eight points two minutes before half time when Aaron Raper and Dean Sampson sent winger Darren Rogers over at the corner. Herron landed a long-range penalty on the stroke of half-time to put Thunder ten points ahead. The Tigers roared back four minutes into the second half when the video ref awarded a try to scrum-half Brad Davis which Danny Orr goaled. Gateshead eased further in front with Herron's second long-range penalty and a Peters drop-goal. Sampson was held on his back over the line before Rogers gave Castleford hope with his second touch-down three minutes from time but Gateshead held out in a frantic finish. |
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