Castleford Beat Giants For Very First Super League Win

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Castleford Tigers (16) 34


Tries: Hood, McIntosh, Lawler, Weaver 2, Golding Goals: Weaver 5


Huddersfield Giants (4) 8


Tries: Gagai, Flanagan


Ashton Golding scored on his Castleford debut against previous club Huddersfield Giants to finish Tigers' very first Super League win of the season.


Tries from Liam Hood, Darnell McIntosh and George Lawler had Tigers cruising inside the opening 30 minutes, however Jacob Gagai pulled one back right before the break to make it 16-4.


Tom Weaver then grabbed two important second-half tries, either side of George Flanagan's four-pointer, to put Tigers on the method to sealing a very first league win under head coach Ryan Carr.


The greatest event of the night was scheduled for Golding, as he for a memorable first shot for his brand-new club versus the side he left after five years at the end of last season.


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The early season kind and bad luck of the West Yorkshire rivals had actually mirrored one another before their meeting at the OneBore Stadium. Both had been winless, pointless and struck by injuries.


Captain Alex Mellor ended up being the most recent Tiger to be sidelined after he broke his leg in last week's defeat at Toulouse, while Giants lacked a host of hurt regulars themselves, including Liam Sutcliff, Joe Greenwood and Harry Rushton due to the fact that of prolonged lay-offs.


France international Tanguy Zenon began for injury-hit Huddersfield simply 2 days after signing up with the club, while there were Tigers debuts for Wigan loanee George Hirst and previous Giants set Jack Ashworth and Golding.


Hood provided the hosts the ideal start, darting from dummy-half to get his second shot of the season after Joe Stimson was reduced close to the line.


Castleford got a deserved second through McIntosh, who scrambled through a tired out Giants defence that had actually been pinned back on their line after Taane Milne offered away a negligent penalty for his high hit on Krystian Mapapalangi.


Milne remained in the sin-bin when Lawler crashed over under the posts for Castleford's 3rd try in the 26th minute, however after that it was Huddersfield who finished the half stronger, with Zenon rejected by a try-saving take on from Mikaele Ravalawa before Gagai ultimately responded with a 38th-minute rating.


Huddersfield continued to threaten however were wasteful looking for a way back into the game before Weaver got on completion of a brilliantly weighted grubber kick from Daejarn Asi to edge Castleford 18 points ahead.


Flanagan provided Giants renewed hope when he struck back not long after, but a 2nd from Weaver put the outcome beyond doubt before Golding crashed over to trigger wild events.


'We bet this winning feeling' - response


Castleford Tigers head coach Ryan Carr informed BBC Radio Leeds:


"That's what we play for, we play to win and play for this sensation today.


"I'm really delighted for my team and really happy for everybody included in our club since a lot of work has gone into getting to this point. And there will continue to be a lot more work.


"But to be able to see them with a smile on their faces, with all the tough work they have actually done considering that the first day of pre-season, is pleasurable.


"But it is one win, we need to keep ensuring we perform consistently every week now."


"I thought we were rubbish, as plain and easy as that.


"We simply robbed ourselves of energy with the amont of dropped balls that we had in that very first half. The lads strove, however they were tired.


"I believe they completed 100% [of their sets] in the second half, and we completed around 60-odd. If you just offer the opposition the ball over and over once again, you are going to get the same outcome.


"Eventually it just robs you of energy and you are essentially playing on fumes.


"Look, they are running around, rushing and trying their hardest however eventually it simply returns to bite you. We just need to find out and require to find out quick."


Castleford Tigers: Cini, Ravalawa, Mapapalangi, McIntosh, Qaraqare, Asi, Weaver, Atoni, Hood, Westerman, Lane, Hirst, Stimson.


Replacements: Lawler, Ashworth, Hall, Golding.


Huddersfield Giants: Patolo, Woolford, Rogers, O'Donnell, Billington, Powell, Russell, Lolohea, Halsall, Milne, Gagai, Zenon, Flanagan.


Replacements: Burgess, King, Rush, English.


Referee: Matty Lynn.