Super League review: Castleford win at Leeds

Thursday, March 22

• Widnes 24-16 Salford

Friday, March 23

• Warrington 34-24 Wakefield
• Leeds 24-25 Castleford
• Hull FC 42-16 Catalans Dragons
• Wigan 48-10 Huddersfield
• Hull KR 6-30 St Helens

Friday

Castleford atoned for their Grand Final defeat with a heart-stopping 25-24 victory in their re-match with Super League champion Leeds.

The Rhinos produced a tremendous fightback after trailing 24-0 after 23 minutes but, despite outscoring their opponents by five tries to four, had left themselves with too much to do in coach Brian McDermott's 200th Super League match.

An epic derby was witnessed by a bumper crowd of 23,246 at Elland Road, a Super League best for Leeds which fell short of their bid to break the record set by Wigan's 25,004 in 2005.

It produced a superb atmosphere and, unlike at Old Trafford where they produced a flat display, Castleford rose magnificently to the occasion.

Castleford were without skipper Michael Shenton but Greg Minikin switched effortlessly to centre and, with hooker Paul McShane in inspirational form, they were at their old breath-taking best in the first half.

Stand-off Jamie Ellis got the ball rolling by latching onto Luke Gale's precision kick through the Leeds defence for the first of their four first-half tries after only five minutes.

The Tigers kept the ball alive superbly on the last tackle to work winger James Clare over for a second try, former Leeds second rower Alex Foster touched down from an Ellis kick and substitute Junior Moors crashed over from McShane's sharp cut-out pass.

Gale kicked all four conversions and, on the stroke of half-time, landed a long-range drop goal which ultimately proved crucial while, in between, the champions briefly stemmed the onslaught.

Leeds looked better for the introduction of teenage full-back Jack Walker after 24 minutes and, after pulling two tries back before half-time, were the better side for most of the second half.

Substitute prop Mikolaj Oledzki was denied a first Super League try after failing to control the ball from Richie Myler's grubber kick but centre pair Kallum Watkins and Ash Handley both reached the tryline after getting on the end of the half-back's high kicks.

Stand-off Joel Moon then had a try disallowed for a forward pass early in the second half but Leeds suffered a blow when prop Brad Singleton was sin-binned for a high tackle on Moors that sparked an outbreak of fighting.

The home side were still down a man when Handley took Myler's pass and stepped neatly through the Castleford defence for his second try on 54 minutes and Watkins' second goal gave his side renewed hope.

Watkins sliced through the Tigers defence on 69 minutes to set up a nerve-jangling finish but he was unable to add the goal and he was also off target when England winger Ryan Hall went over for his side's fifth try three minutes from the end.

Winger Tom Lineham claimed a hat-trick of tries to help Warrington to a thrilling 34-24 victory over Wakefield at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.

In the week that Warrington signed another winger in Josh Charnley from rugby union side Sale, Lineham claimed a quickfire double in the opening 13 minutes of the game, both created by in-form full-back Stefan Ratchford.

And then in the closing stages Lineham went the length of the field for a spectacular try as he outpaced Ben Jones-Bishop in a thrilling race to the line to claim his hat-trick score.

England international Ratchford, who kicked three goals, also created a try for Bryson Goodwin, while Mike Cooper and Ben Murdoch-Masila also touched down for the Wolves, with Goodwin also landing two goals.

Wakefield claimed five tries through Reece Lyne, Bill Tupou, Tom Johnstone, Jones-Bishop and Liam Finn in defeat, with Finn and Taylor Randell landing a goal apiece.

New signing Charnley was made to wait for his Warrington debut as Wolves boss Steve Price selected the same 17 that defeated Catalans Dragons 26-0.

Wakefield, whose game against Widnes was abandoned the previous week, were forced into a last-minute change when David Fifita pulled out after the warm-up and Keegan Hirst was promoted off the bench to start in the front row.

It was the hosts who made a whirlwind start to the game and took the lead after just two minutes when Ratchford's excellent long pass gave Lineham the space to race in at the corner.

The visitors did well to weather the early storm and drew level when some quick hands along the line allowed Lyne to dummy his way over from close range.

But in an almost carbon copy of their first try, the Wolves regained the lead just three minutes later when Ratchford's pin-point pass allowed Lineham to cross in the corner.

Goodwin, whose first conversion attempt hit the post, saw his second attempt this time go over off the post and then the New Zealand centre added a penalty to give the Wolves a 12-4 lead.

But Wakefield roared back with two tries in three minutes to stun their hosts.

Firstly, Tupou ghosted past some static Warrington defenders to touch down and then the Tongan centre made a superb 40-metre break and the supporting Jacob Miller was on hand to take the pass before sending Finn over.

That took Finn's points-scoring run to 31 matches and he added the extras to give his side a 14-12 lead.

They took that two-point advantage into the interval after Goodwin missed a relatively straightforward penalty attempt with the last kick of an entertaining opening 40 minutes

However, Warrington regained the lead just a minute after the restart when a bulldozing 40-metre run straight from the kick off by Sitaleki Akauola put the Wolves straight on the front foot, and it set up the position from which Ratchford's deft pass sent Goodwin clear to score.

The excitement continued as played ebbed and flowed from end to end and it was the home side who claimed the crucial next score on the hour mark when they kept the ball alive on the last tackle and Toby King's kick was touched down by Cooper.

The Murdoch-Masila went on a rampaging 35-metre run for a spectacular try, and Ratchford was on target with all three conversions and the points looked secure at 30-14

But Trinity hit back immediately when they regained possession from a short kick off which set up the position from which Johnstone claimed a fine try to give them hope of a dramatic fightback.

However, Lineham's length-of-the-field effort made the game safe for the Wolves, which made Jones-Bishop's last-minute effort a consolation score for the visitors.

Wigan Warriors made it three wins on the bounce as they ran in nine tries to hammer Huddersfield Giants 48-10.

Wigan never really looked in any danger as they went in at half-time 28-4 in front with Huddersfield's only score coming from a Wigan error.

Tom Davies put the Warriors in front, before Huddersfield responded with an interception try from Jermaine McGillvary.

Further tries from Davies, Oliver Gildart, Joe Burgess and John Bateman saw Wigan in full control at the break.

Wigan didn't need to be at their best in the second period as the damage had already been done, but a fine solo try from George Williams and further scores from Ryan Sutton, Willie Isa and another from Burgess saw them cruise to victory to leave Huddersfield with just two wins all season.

The Warriors scored with their first attack of the game as Sam Tomkins linked up from the back and sent a long cut-out ball for Davies to steam onto and touch down in the corner.

Wigan looked menacing and Tomkins spotted an overlap and sent over another long ball - this time down the left - only to see it intercepted by McGillvary, who raced 50 metres to score.

The Giants enjoyed a lot of possession deep in Wigan's half, but they were unable to get their noses in front.

After spending a good seven minutes defending their own line, the Warriors marched downfield and extended their lead as Sam Powell's early kick over was collected by Davies as he grabbed his second of the evening.

The Warriors were hitting their stride and back-to-back penalties saw them camp on Huddersfield's line, which was breached again as Gildart went over on the left following good work from Williams.

The game was as good as over in the 31st minute when the Warriors ran in their fourth try as Williams again tormented Huddersfield on the left flank and sent Burgess in at the corner.

Bateman then went over on the hooter following more good work from Tomkins, the full-back converting both tries.

The Giants were handed a massive blow early in the second half as McGillvary limped out of the action following an innocuous challenge from Liam Farrell.

The Warriors extended their lead 12 minutes into the second-half as Williams spun away in the tackle to touch down, with Tomkins kicking his fifth conversion of the night before going off for a well-earned rest.

Huddersfield failed to take advantage of the few chances they had and paid for it as Ryan Sutton then crashed over to take the Warriors to 40.

Willie Isa managed to force his way over for the Warriors, while Huddersfield managed a late consolation when Ryan Hinchcliffe went over, but Wigan had the final say as Burgess grabbed his second.

St Helens bounced back from their first defeat of the season by beating Hull KR 30-6.

A 28-20 loss at the hands of Leeds last week ended Saints' perfect start to the campaign but they responded with a battling performance on the road to keep hold of top spot.

Ben Barba proved to be the difference for St Helens with a try in both halves and had a hand in a decisive Jonny Lomax score as Luke Thompson and Dominique Peyroux also crossed in a scoreline that flattered the visitors.

Ryan Shaw got the Robins on the board with a try on the brink of half-time to reduce the score to 14-6 but injuries to George Lawler and Andrew Heffernan plagued Tim Sheens' side, who could not back up their impressive victory at Huddersfield.

Rovers almost opened the scoring after six minutes when a slick left-to-right move set up by Danny McGuire put Shaw in the corner but the winger could not stay in touch despite his acrobatic efforts.

Visiting winger Adam Swift went off with a hand injury before another nice passing move brought the Robins within metres of the whitewash, but Saints hit back through Thompson, who marked his 100th Super League appearance for the club with the opening try.

The visitors finally broke into Hull KR's half and were rewarded when the prop burst a hole in the defence to give St Helens a 6-0 lead after 15 minutes.

Hooker Lawler was stretchered off with a serious leg injury moments later before Richardson extended the advantage to 8-0 with a penalty.

Resilient defending held Maurice Blair up over the line before an intricate grubber kick from Danny McGuire forced a goal-line dropout as the hosts began to build momentum.

But their hard work was undone when Barba sliced the through the Rovers defence off the back of a scrum and scored in the corner to put Saints 14-0 up.

The home side got the try their play deserved on the stroke of half-time, despite the loss of centre Heffernan, through the club's leading tryscorer Shaw. Justin Carney was denied 10 metres out, but a flowing move on the next drive created an overlap for the winger to dot down in the corner.

The scoreboard was rarely threatened in an ill-disciplined 15 minutes at the start of the second half but slack defence from the home side following another penalty helped Saints increase their advantage through some Barba magic.

James Roby tapped a penalty 10 metres from the Hull KR line before sending a simple pass to the Australian, who played an instant give-and-go with Zeb Taia and stretched over the line/

Mark Percival went close to marking his 100th league appearance for Saints with a try but it was not long before Justin Holbrook's side killed off the match when a wonderful cut-out pass from Barba found Tommy Makinson, who popped a pass inside to Lomax to score.

Peyroux added gloss on the scoreline with St Helens' fifth try nine minutes from time.

Hull FC put their misery on the road behind them as they got back to winning ways by overcoming bottom-placed Catalans Dragons.

Recent defeats at Leeds and Salford mean Hull have lost all four matches away from home this season, but they maintained their 100 per cent record at the KCOM Stadium with an emphatic 42-16 victory over the Dragons.

Josh Griffin and Fetuli Talanoa got the ball rolling for Hull and both registered tries in each half while Jamie Shaul, Scott Taylor and Jake Connor all crossed after half-time.

Marc Sneyd was successful with all six of his conversion attempts for Hull, for whom returning half-back Albert Kelly made a positive impact in his first start since suffering a head injury against Castleford last month.

Former Hull prop Sam Moa, Lucas Albert and Tony Gigot were the try-scorers for Catalans, who gave a decent account of themselves in the first half before capitulating after the interval.

They remain rooted to the foot of the standings with just one win from their opening seven games while they have amassed just 76 points in that time.

The Perpignan club's cause was not helped by some early indiscipline that led to Hull territory in a dangerous position.

Danny Washbrook's pass led to Griffin atoning for an earlier knock-on as he bounced off an attempted tackle from Catalans stand-off Samisoni Langi to go over for a 10th-minute try.

Hull were galvanised and needed only another four minutes to further their advantage, with Talanoa leaping above a nervy Catalans defence to touch down from Kelly's crossfield kick.

Any thoughts of Catalans immediately wilting were summarily dismissed as, on their first sustained assault on the line, Moa burst through a gap in the Hull defence to charge over in the 19th minute.

Albert was unable to add the extras, meaning Hull held an eight-point advantage following Sneyd's two earlier successful conversions.

Perhaps emboldened by scoring just their 10th try of the season, Catalans fought on equal terms for the rest of the half and only a last-gasp intervention held up David Mead after he had burst over the line.

However, they fell further behind two minutes into the second half when Shaul ignored the support of Bureta Faraimo on the right to surge over.

The visitors' misery was further compounded when first Julian Bousquet was held up on the line before Fouad Yaha grounded just over the dead ball line from Albert's grubber.

Any hopes Catalans had of responding were effectively ended when Carlos Tuimavave's excellent offload was collected by Talanoa, who held on to the ball by his ankles and crossed on the left in the 55th minute.

Taylor jinked his way over just before the hour mark while Catalans full-back Gigot dropped a high ball almost immediately afterwards, allowing Connor to score Hull's sixth try.

Catalans scrum-half Albert and Gigot struck late on but by then the result was already a formality and Griffin touched down on the hooter, with Connor converting.

Thursday

Late tries from Greg Burke and Aaron Heremaia sealed a gusty comeback from Widnes as they beat Salford 24-16.

All the signs were pointing to a workmanlike Red Devils victory after Widnes had failed to hit any kind of form in the game, but they dragged themselves back into it with a red-hot final quarter.

The last time Widnes turned over Salford in Super League was back in 2015 and the game looked like it was taking a familiar turn until the Vikings grabbed it by the scruff of the neck and never let go.

Salford appeared to be cruising to a crucial win over a Widnes side tipped for the wooden spoon this season, but they left the Halton Stadium empty handed and wondering how the game had got away from them.

The spotlight and pressure is now all on Ian Watson's side ahead of the crunch clash with Catalans Dragons next week, while the Vikings' three wins from seven games sets them up nicely for the busy Easter period.

The Red Devils made an electric start to proceedings with a number of high intensity action plays that nearly put them over at least once in the opening exchanges.

Salford's fast-paced start should have been rewarded early doors as they ran the ball on the last tackle, with quick hands sending new signing and debutant Derrell Olpherts over in the corner, however the try was denied by the video referee.

They finally got the score they were searching for on 17 minutes as Rob Lui's high kick was allowed to bounce by the Vikings and up popped Josh Jones to recover the ball and offload to Craig Kopczak, a player linked with a transfer this week, for the opening score.

The video ref was called into action again as Widnes' Ted Chapelhow looked to barge over but that was chalked off by the off-field official. However, the very next play resulted in a four-pointer as Joe Mellor found a gap to send Chris Dean crashing in.

Lui got Salford back in front with two consecutive penalties as Widnes' discipline faded towards the end of the half.

But it was not long before Salford's aggression got the better of them as Lama Tasi was sent to the sin bin within four minutes of the restart.

The Vikings made hay while the blockbusting prop was off the field and momentum changed in their favour.

Widnes gave the ball some air and Rhys Hanbury's burst and pass to Krisnan Inu gave the Kiwi space to touchdown out wide for a try that he converted himself.

Somehow Denis Betts' side found themselves 12-10 in front without ever really threatening but that good work was soon undone by defensive errors as Ed Chamberlain coughed up a Lui kick into the path of Weller Hauraki who could not be stopped.

Another Lui goal inched Salford closer to the finishing line but the game was far from over as Widnes hit back through Burke after he connected with Heremaia's dummy-half pass.

Then Danny Craven stabbed a grubber kick through that Heremaia got on the end of to put the Vikings in charge to see out the game.

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