Castleford Tigers
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| Castleford Tigers | |
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| Full name | Castleford Tigers Rugby League Club..AKA..Classy Cas |
| Emblem | Tiger |
| Colours | Black and Amber |
| Founded | 1926 |
| Sport | Rugby league |
| League | LHF Healthplan National League One |
| Ground | The Jungle |
| Official website | www.castigers.com |
Castleford Tigers are one of the most famous rugby league teams in England. They are based in Castleford in West Yorkshire. They are sometimes known as 'Cas' or 'Classy Cas'. In the early days many of their supporters worked as glassblowers which is another of the club's nicknames.
The Tigers play their home games at 'The Jungle' named after their former sponser 'Jungle.com. After the company was bought by 'Argos' they removed all affiliation with the Tigers but the club decided to keep the name for marketing purposes. The ground was previous named after the road it is situated, 'Wheldon Road', and despite its old fashioned style the ground is still believed to offer one of the best and most volatile atmospheres in the game.
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[edit] History
[edit] Early years
There was also a Castleford team which took part in the Yorkshire league from 1896-97 to 1905-06 inclusive.
Castleford Rugby League Football Club was founded in June 1926, after a successful era in the Yorkshire Senior competition, Castleford were admitted to the sport's professional ranks in 1926. Cas played at the Sandy Desert ground from 1920 to 1927 before moving to Wheldon Road. The club was quick to achieve success winning the Yorkshire League in 1932, followed by their first Challenge Cup title in 1935.
Castleford were beaten championship finalists in 1938-39.
[edit] Post World War Two
Castleford were again beaten championship finalists in 1968-69, when they suffered a late defeat to arch-rivals Leeds.
From the introduction of two divisions in 1973 until the Super League era Castleford Tigers were one of a handful of clubs to have constantly remained in the top division of British rugby league.
The legendary half-back pairing of Alan Hardisty and Keith Hepworth inspired the club to back-to-back Challenge Cup triumphs in 1969 and 1970.
The Tigers were the leading club in Yorkshire in the early 1990s, finishing in the top four of the Championship no less than four times during this period. The highlight of the early 1990s was in 1994 when the Castleford Tigers defeated Wigan Warriors to claim the Regal Trophy at Headingley in a 33-2 victory, were semi-finalists in the Challenge Cup and were narrowly defeated in the Premiership final.
[edit] Super League
When Super League was suggested Castleford were supposed to merge with Wakefield Trinity Wildcats and Featherstone Rovers to form 'Calder'. This was strongly resisted by all sets of supporters but enthusiasts for mergers point out that while Wakefield district is a hotbed of rugby league it does not have the population to sustain three sides. While there is some merit to this opinion, it ignores that the Castleford Tigers had the largest attendances in National League One and attracted comparatively good levels of support in their times in the top flight since the advent of Super League averaging around seven thousand.
Castleford added 'Tigers' to their name for the 1995/6 season. Cas were founder members of Super League in 1996. Stuart Raper was offered the job of head coach.
At the start of the 1997 season Castleford were seen as a teammaking up the numbers and few held hopes for them avoiding relegation. Throughout the season they struggled and only just managed to avoid being relegated, eventually finishing tenth.
With a new season in 1998 many pundits predicted the Tigers would be relegated to National League One. Castleford, in fact stayed near the top of the table for the majority of the season and eventually finished sixth.
In the 1999 season the Tigers had bettered their previous position and finished fifth. They semi finals of both the Challenge Cup and the Grand Final play-offs.
2000 was Rapers last season with the Tigers and their performance somewhat mirrored their previous season as they finished fifth and into the play-offs for a consecutive season.
They made the semi final of the Challenge Cup once again in 2002.
They were relegated from Super League at the end of the 2004 season, but were promoted back the following season, after winning the National League One Grand Final against Whitehaven.
Castleford currently play their traditional black and amber, however their previous colours were orange and black. A limited edition shirt in these traditional colours was released to commemorate participation in the 2005 final of the Northern Rail Cup, which Castleford lost 16-18 to Hull Kingston Rovers, in front of 9,400 people (a record attendance for the cup). The club experienced record sales of the new home shirt for 2007.
Even after a solid return season the Castleford Tigers were once again relegated from the Super League on Saturday 16 September 2006 after losing 29-17 to rivals Wakefield Trinity Wildcats at Belle Vue. The match dubbed "The Battle of Belle Vue" was the last game of the season and whoever lost the match would have been relegated. This caused uproar in the rugby league community. Castleford were relegated which the highest points total for a relegated side in Super League history with 19.
[edit] Current squad
As of 25 October 2006:
| Number | Player | Position | Previous Club | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Tom Saxton | Full Back | Wakefield Trinity Wildcats |
| 2 | |
Michael Wainwright | Wing | Batley Bulldogs |
| 3 | |
Michael Shenton | Centre | Upton ARL |
| 4 | |
Stuart Donlan | Centre | Huddersfield Giants |
| 5 | |
Kirk Dixon | Centre | Hull FC |
| 6 | |
Peter Lupton | Stand Off | Hull FC |
| 7 |  |
Danny Brough | Scrum Half | Hull FC
|
| 8 | |
Craig Huby | Prop | Castleford Academy |
| 9 | |
Andrew Henderson | Hooker | Wests Tigers |
| 10 | |
Liam Higgins | Prop | Hull FC |
| 11 |  |
Awen Guttenbeil | Second Row | NZ Warriors |
| 12 | |
Dwayne Barker | Second Row | Hull KR |
| 13 | |
Chris Charles | Loose Forward | Salford City Reds |
| 14 | |
Ryan Clayton | Loose Forward | Halifax RLFC |
| 15 | |
Jason Payne | Prop | Castleford Tigers Academy |
| 16 |  |
Ryan McGoldrick | Centre | Cronulla Sharks |
| 17 | |
Ryan Boyle | Prop | Castleford Tigers Academy |
| 18 | |
James King | Second Row | Wyong-Roos |
| 19 | |
Michael Knowles | Second Row | Castleford Tigers Academy |
| 20 | |
Mark Leafa | Second Row | Whitehaven RLFC |
| 21 | |
Richard Owen | Full Back | Castleford Tigers Academy |
| 22 | |
Alex Shenton | Wing | Castleford Tigers Academy |
[edit] Players of note
- Les Adams
- Arthur Atkinson
- Kevin Beardmore
- Bob Beardmore
- Bill Bryant
- St John Ellis
- Mike Ford
- Harold Haley
- Alan Hardisty
- Dennis Hartley
- Keith Hepworth
- John Joyner
- Bill Kirkbride
- Brian Lockwood
- Tawera Nikau
- Danny Nutley
- Danny Orr
- Malcolm Reilly
- Dean Sampson
- John Sheridan
- Peter Small
- Graham Steadman
- Adrian Vowles
- Johnny Ward
- Kevin Ward
- Denzil Webster
[edit] Honours
- Challenge Cup : 1934-35, 1968-69, 1969-70, 1985-86 (4 times)
- Yorkshire Cup: 1977-78, 1981-82, 1986-87, 1990-91, 1991-92 (5 times)
- York League Cup: 1932-33, 1938-39, 1964-65 (3 times)
- Regal Trophy: 1976-77, 1993-94 (2 times)
- BBC2 Floodlit Trophy: 1965-66, 1966-67, 1967-68,1976/77, (4 times)
- National League One: 2005
[edit] Records
[edit] Super League Era
[edit] Player records
- Most tries in a game: 4 by Waine Pryce (vs Wakefield) 1 September 2002
- Most goals in a game: 9 by Frano Botica (vs Workington) 12 May 1996
- Most points in a game: 20 by Frano Botica (vs Paris Saint-Germain) 7 June 1996 & Danny Orr (vs Halifax) 5 September 1999
- Most tries in a season: 23 by Darren Rogers 1999
- Most goals in a season: 114 by Wayne Bartrim 2002
- Most points in a season: 244 by Danny Orr, 1999
[edit] Team records
- Biggest win: 74-16 vs Salford, 7 April 2002
- Heaviest defeat: 64-6 vs Warrington Wolves, 17 April 2006
- Highest attendance: 11,702 vs Leeds 31 May 2000
[edit] All Time
[edit] Player records
- Most tries in a game: 5 by John Joyner (vs Millom) 16 September 1973, Derek Foster (vs Hunslet) November 1972, Steve Fenton (vs Dewsbury) 27 January 1978, Ian French (vs Hunslet) 9 February 1986 & St John Ellis (vs Whitehaven) 10 December 1989
- Most goals in a game: 17 by Sammy Lloyd (vs Millom) 16 September 1973
- Most points in a game: 43 by Sammy Lloyd (vs Millom) 16 September 1973
- Most tries in a season: 40 by St John Ellis 1993-1994
- Most goals in a season: 158 by Sammy Lloyd 1976-1977
- Most points in a season: 334 by Bob Beardmore, 1983-1984
- Most career tries: 206 by Alan Hardisty 1958-1971
- Most career goals 875 by Albert Lunn 1951-1963
- Most career points: 1870 by Albert Lunn 1951-1963
[edit] Team records
- Biggest win: 94-12 vs Huddersfield, 18 September 1988
- Heaviest defeat: 6-64 vs Warrington Wolves, 21 April 2006
- Highest attendance: 25,449 vs Hunslet 9 March 1935
[edit] Sources
[edit] External links
- Official site
- Unofficial Castigers.net
- Aye Of The Tigers Fanzine
- Unofficial Forum
- Unofficial site
- Supporters Club Website
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