Wolves v Cas: Match Preview

Castleford Tigers make the trip across the Pennines to Cheshire to face a Warrington Wolves side that has underperformed this season in Super League.  

The last time The Fords faced The Wire was at Wheldon Road where Cas ran out worthy winners by way of a 35-22 scoreline.  

The Tigers can take a step towards top six playoff qualification with a win, and with eyes on other results going Cas’ way. 

Nathan Massey makes a welcome return to the 21-man list after rehabilitating a knee injury which was thought to keep him out for the remainder of the season and Liam Watts is back available after serving a two-match suspension 

Jordan Turner and Cheyse Blair have stepped out of the squad declaration for this fixture. Adam Milner and Suaia Matagi remain unavailable for selection with one match left on both of their two-match suspensions. 

Jack Hughes returns to the Warrington Squad having missed the last four months after undergoing an operation on a shoulder injury. Stefan Ratchford and Tom Mikaele both return after missing out last week.

Radford v Powell – The Old Guard vs The New Cas Era in the coaching department. Both coaches have one victory over each other this season and two points will be vital to both for varied reasons.  

Richardson v Williams – In the battle of the 7s, Richardson has been on form for Cas of late, while Williams will be looking for a big end to the season as he aims to get in the England squad for the World Cup. 

Westerman v Holmes – Both players have played for both teams. The battle between the two will be one to keep an eye on as both Loose forwards look to finish strong. 

Joe Westerman – Tiger Joe Westerman played for Warrington in 2016/17 making 53 appearances scoring 12 tries 

Gareth O’Brien - Gareth O’Brien played for Warrington between 2011 and 2015. In that time Gaz was loaned out to a number of Clubs, one of those being Cas, before joining the Tigers permanently in 2021. 

Peter Mata’utia - Peanut played for Cas for three years, firstly joining the club on loan from Leigh, and then making his move permanent in 2019. He left for Warrington in 2022 and has heavily featured this season. 

Oliver Holmes – Olly Holmes played for the tigers for a whopping 11 years before his move over to Warrington.  

“He’s (Massey) healed better than we expected, so that’s really pleasing to have him back. He adds a bit more to our middle with his experience and some of the niches that he hads in and around the ruck.” 

“This will be the third time we’ve played this group, and we’re very aware of where their threats are, but like always, it’s about what attitude we tun up with and what we’re about.” 

“We’re confident. It’s in our own hands. With three games in quick succession it’s not ideal the week before the play offs, but it’s a chance for us to be on, and nail some wins and get into the six. We’re excited and confident.” 

“As players, we just turn up to training and play every day. It’s our job and we turn up and do it as best we can. We don’t get involved too much in the talk, we just turn up and do our job. We’re mentally ready to go and we’re excited for it.” 

Warrington Wolves: 5. Matty Ashton, 15. Joe Bullock, 9. Daryl Clark, 14. Jason Clark, 11. Ben Currie, 27. Riley Dean, 36. Matt Dufty, 20. James Harrison, 12. Oliver Holmes, 37. Adam Holroyd, 13. Jack Hughes, 3. Peter Mata'utia, 33. Tom Mikaele, 21. Greg Minikin, 19. Robbie Mulhern, 1. Stefan Ratchford, 22. Josh Thewlis, 38. Luke Thomas, 16. Danny Walker, 34. Jake Wardle, 7. George Williams. 

Castleford Tigers: 2. Derrell Olpherts, 4. Jake Mamo, 5. Bureta Faraimo, 7. Danny Richardson, 8. Liam Watts, 9. Paul McShane, 10. George Lawler, 11. Kenny Edwards, 13. Joe Westerman, 14. Nathan Massey, 15. George Griffin, 17. Mahe Fonua, 21. Alex Sutcliffe, 22. Daniel Smith, 23. Greg Eden, 28. Brad Martin, 29. Sam Hall, 31. Gareth O’Brien, 32. Cain Robb, 33. Jason Qareqare, 37. Alex Mellor 

If you’re travelling over to the Halliwell Jones Stadium this Thursday, we wish you a safe trip! Tweet us in your photos and we’ll share the best ones! 

Don’t forget to get in touch with the Club on social media by using the hashtags: #NewCasEra and/or #COYF.