History of Rugby League in Castleford

All things related to the Castleford Tigers.
Sharlotiger
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 1802
Joined: 05 Jul 2006, 23:02
Location: WAKEFIELD
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Sharlotiger » 31 Mar 2020, 19:47

Mysterio wrote: 31 Mar 2020, 16:05 What has struck me, apart from the valued and time caspule (thanks ken) is how bigger the leagues were and how many other areas had an interest in the game,

I’d much rather see us promoting a Liverpool Storm than a Toronto Wolfpack, or a Cardiff cardinals etc. The list goes on.

Our game would be in a much healthier state and Liverpool for example love their sport; despite St. Helens, they’d eventually top 10-15k fans easy.
Very few watched Liverpool Stanley back in the days and even less when they changed their name to Huyton , the likes of Liverpool and Cardiff have had their chance to embrace the game in many guises over the years but have failed to be enthused by the sport, at least the sporting public of Toronto seem interested in the game.

Mysterio
League One Player
League One Player
Posts: 4497
Joined: 29 Jan 2008, 22:32
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Mysterio » 02 Apr 2020, 12:29

Toronto have had A winning team and wealthy owner to push the game.

There’s little doubt in my mind we’d have similar success in our own bloody country and stabilise our own game
Audacter Et Sincere

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 19 Apr 2020, 16:52

I’m having a stab again at continuing the history of Castleford RLFC, so on to the 1959/60 season where Cas finished 18th out of the usual 30 clubs participating with 36 points from their 38 matches. Cas only beat 3 clubs who finished above them in the final League table, Huddersfield 32-7, Batley 22-16 and Leeds on Easter Monday 19-17 all at home. Once again they lost twice to Featherstone and Wakefield who finished 2nd in the final table. Cas had started the season well winning 5 of their first 7 matches, but after that never won more than 2 matches in succession. They were also eliminated from both cup competitions in the first round, 14-27 at Dewsbury in the Yorkshire Cup, and 4-8 at home to Bradford Northern in the Challenge Cup.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 19 Apr 2020, 17:42

On to the 1960/61 season and the signing of Derek Edwards, John Walker, Johnny Ward, Keith Slatter and Brian Marsden with Cas making a reasonable start winning 8 of their first 13 matches including a thumping of Bramley 46-20. However Cas lost all 6 matches against Wakefield, Featherstone and Leeds who not only topped the League but also won the playoff Final. Cas finished 17th and again found it hard to beat teams above them only Leigh, Hunslet and Hull KR all at home. Here again they made a reasonable start winning 9 of their first 15 matches but fell away with only 34 points from their 36 matches. However they were slightly more successful in the two cup competitions beating Bradford 25-7 away in the Yorkshire Cup before losing 3-15 at Huddersfield in the 2nd Round, and beating Dewsbury Celtic 32-0 before losing 10-18 at home to St Helens in the 2nd Round.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 19 Apr 2020, 18:13

The 1961/62 season had important significations as the top 16 were to play in an experimental First Division. Having signed Malcolm Battye Cas started badly losing their first 3 matches, but recovered to win 9 of their next 12 including 3 successive away wins 18-4 at Hunslet, 10-5 at Dewsbury and 21-12 at Hull. In mid-season they won 6 out of 7 matches and at one point had won 19 out of 26 League matches including a 15-3 home win over Leeds. Cas then tailed off winning only 2 of their final 7 matches, but by then had secured a top half finish eventually finishing 12th with 42 points from their 36 matches. One satisfying result was after losing at home 4-11 to Featherstone only 5 days later Cas won the away fixture on Easter Monday 26-8. In the Yorkshire Cup after beating Halifax 37-8 at home they lost 12-20 at Leeds in the Second Round, whilst in the Challenge Cup after beating Bradford 12-0 and Hunslet 27-4 both at home it took a replay at Huddersfield to eliminate Cas 4-10 in the 3rd Round.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 19 Apr 2020, 18:50

So into the big time with Alan Hardisty and Keith Hepworth now well established as the half backs into their 5th season and the introduction of Keith Howe, Duggie Walton, Jack Gamble and Trevor Bedford started the season with 8 matches in the Eastern Division winning only 4 of them, followed by the Yorkshire Cup where after beating Batley 28-2 they lost 12-28 to Hull KR in the Second Round. It was not the start that Cas had envisaged, but when the League matches started in October Cas came to life. They started off with a home win 21-15 over Halifax then drew 10-10 at St Helens. Cas followed that up with a 18-14 home win over Swinton the eventual Champions and finished the season in a very satisfying position of 4th with 35 points
from their 30 matches. Other notable victories were 8-6 against Featherstone, 18-7 against Wigan, 13-4 against Leeds and 21-8 against Wakefield all at home plus a 18-8 win at Workington and a 18-18 draw at Wigan. Unfortunately Cas lost at home to Leeds 8-10 in the First Round of the Challenge Cup, but it has to be said that Cas had at last arrived.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 19 Apr 2020, 19:34

Having stormed to the League title but 6 points over St Helens in the previous season, Swinton repeated the 6 points title win this time over Wigan in the 1963/64 season. As for Cas with the introduction of Clive Dickinson as reserve hooker, Cas finished 6th despite having accrued a point more than the previous season. The League campaign began badly with only one win from the first 5 matches as well as a Yorkshire Cup defeat at Leeds in the First Round. Cas had started the season by beating Wakefield 33-7, but a week later were humiliated at Craven Park 6-47 by Hull KR. However an 8 match winning run from mid-October stabilised the season. This run included a 13-12 win against the Australian tourists, an 18-12 win at Wigan and a 28-2 home win against Leeds. The Challenge Cup was also fairly successful with a stunning 13-6 win at St Helens, followed by routine wins at Whitehaven 29-5 and Blackpool Borough 25-4, thus setting up a Semifinal at Swinton against Widnes which ended 7-7. Sadly the replay at Wakefield 4 days later ended Cas’s Wembley hopes as they lost 5-7. However prior to that Cup Semifinal Cas had won 6 successive matches including beating Featherstone at home 14-5 and Champions elect Swinton 17-2 also at home. Following another heavy defeat this time 9-43 at Workington, 4 days later Cas beat Wigan at home 24-14. This season the Eastern Division matches had been interspersed throughout the season and resulted in a home Semifinal for Cas against Bramley which Cas won 11-2, but the Final at Huddersfield resulted in a 12-20 defeat to Halifax. However the season ended on a high with the final match being a fine 11-10 home win against St Helens.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 19 Apr 2020, 20:18

The experimental two 2 Divisions had not proved successful, so the 1964/65 season saw the return of one League of 30 clubs but what a season it proved to be for Cas. First of all it saw the debuts of Roger Millward,
Abe Terry, Ron Hill and fullback Ron Willet but an amazing home record of 15 wins, 1 draw 7-7 against Wakefield, and only 1 defeat 2-3 to Swinton. Twice Cas won 6 successive League matches and twice they won 5 successive League matches. They twice beat Featherstone within the space of 12 days, 29-7 at home and 15-2 away. Leeds were beaten 13-6, Wigan 17-0 and Workington 32-0. Cas also won 10 of their 17 away matches the biggest win being at Batley 32-7. All of their 7 away defeats were against clubs in the top 11 positions, the closest being a 5-7 reverse at Leeds. The disappointments we’re losing in the First Rounds of both the Yorkshire Cup at home to Hull KR 8-16 and 9-22 at St Helens in the Challenge Cup. The end of season saw the top 16 playing off with 1st playing 16th at home, etc. Cas having finished 3rd (their highest position for 26 years) beat Hunslet 18-7 and Workington 11-3, but then surprisingly lost at home to 7th placed Halifax 18-26 in the Semifinal playoff. Then Halifax beat League leaders St Helens 15-7 in the Final. But let’s not forget what a wonderful home record in League matches Cas had attained.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 21 Apr 2020, 20:04

The 1965/66 season started with an away fixture at Wakefield and Cas after having lost 24 successive League defeats at Belle Vue at last won there 24-5. The season also saw the debuts of forwards Brian Lockwood and Mick Redfearn, winger Trevor Briggs and centre Ian Stenton. After losing at home 15-19 to St Helens, Cas then progressed to the Semifinal of the Yorkshire Cup with home wins over Featherstone 22-8 (my first taste of Rugby League)and Halifax 25-8 but surprisingly lost 10-17 to Hunslet. Cas also lost 6-7 to the New Zealand tourists, but what followed was an amazing unbeaten run of 13 matches which started with a 10-8 away win at Wigan. A new BBC mid-week floodlit competition started with group matches and Cas drew 7-7 at Leeds but won 6-4 at Oldham giving them another away fixture into the Semifinal where they disposed of Widnes 12-9. The unbeaten run ended at home to Halifax in the League, but 3 days later Cas won their first silverware for 30 years by beating St Helens 4-0 away in the Floodlit Final. Cas lost away to Warrington in the First Round of the Challenge Cup, but their League form was only 2 points short of the previous season with 2 wins over Featherstone 8-5 at home and 17-9 away giving them a final position of 5th. Unfortunately in the Championship Playoffs Cas lost at the first hurdle 10-13 at home to Hull KR.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 21 Apr 2020, 21:01

For the 1966/67 season Cas recruited winger Jack Austin and centre Tony Thomas along with Glyn Jones, Roy Bell and Derek Foster, but the most significant purchase was that of Dennis Hartley from Hunslet. The Floodlit Competition was increased from 8 clubs to 11 meaning there were 3 preliminary ties over two legs before the group stages. Cas won 16-11 at Leigh and 39-18 at home to join a group includes Leeds whom Cas drew 11-11 away to, and Warrington who they beat at home 31-10. In the Yorkshire Cup after beating Batley 32-2 at home Cas lost at home to their bogey team Halifax 14-18. Cas’s League form was a bit scratchy at first but then came a run of 13 successive wins, 10 of which were in the League. The other 3 were in the Floodlit Competition, a 21-5 home win over Barrow in the Semifinal and a 7-2 win at Headingley over Swinton in the Final. The other wins in that winning run were away to Leigh 10-8 in the Challenge Cup followed a week later with a 19-15 home win over Leeds. Two weeks later Cas drew 9-9 at Craven Park against Hull KR in the Challenge Cup play but the replay on the following Wednesday saw the ground record broken by some distance as well over 23,000 officially witnessed the 13-6 win, but some estimates put the attendance at over 30,000. The Third Round 7-8 away defeat to Featherstone was a real surprise and it obviously affected the moral of the team as the next 4 matches were all lost including a 10-35 defeat at Wakefield and a 13-15 defeat at Featherstone. However the Championship Playoffs reignited the team as by finishing 8th with 42 points from their 34 matches Cas beat 9th placed Hull 21-7 at home and then League Champions Leeds 13-9 at Headingley. However 4th placed St Helens beat Cas 14-3 in the Semifinal.
However Home League attendances had increased from an average of 5,702 to 8,986.

tigerfeat
Super League Player
Super League Player
Posts: 14604
Joined: 23 Jun 2014, 12:07
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by tigerfeat » 22 Apr 2020, 07:17

The signing of Denis Hartley was the final piece in the jigsaw that completed that great side of the 60s
The measure of who we are is what we do with what we have
Vince Lombardi

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 22 Apr 2020, 15:52

The 1967/68 season saw the signing of Mal Reilly, Danny Hargrove, Frank Fox and David Stephens but also the transfer of Roger Millward to Hull KR. In any other age Roger the Dodger would have been a shoo-in for Cas. I’m always reminded of him whenever I saw Rob Burrows play. The highlight of the season though was the 22-3 win against the Australian tourists and the dominance of the pack of Hartley, Ward, Walton, Bryant, Redfearn and Reilly. Cas didn’t start the season too well with defeat in the First Round of the Yorkshire at home to Hull 7-13, and 5 defeats in the first 10 League matches including a 11-31 defeat at Wakefield in the first match of the season. However Cas woke up when the Floodlit Competition started. Home wins against Keighley 18-7 and Leeds 12-9 with a late try set up a Semifinal at Headingley against Warrington which Cas won 14-2 then the Final also at Headingley where Cas beat Leigh 8-5. Three successive Cup Final wins after not winners any silverware for over 30 years. In the Challenge Cup Cas easily beat BOCM of Hull 39-6 and then won 7-2 at Workington, but again suffered defeat at Wakefield 5-18. Cas beat Featherstone twice 18-9 away but only by 10-8 at home and also lost twice to Leeds in the League 8-25 at home and 5-16 away to finish 8th again in the League with 45 points from their 34 matches. In the Championship playoffs having beat Salford 47-15 they then lost again to Wakefield 14-17 for the 4th time in the season. Average crowd attendance figures also dropped to 6,137.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 22 Apr 2020, 17:28

The 1968/69 must go down as the most historic season in Cas’s history. First of all Cas won 13 and drew one of their first 14 League matches including a 15-6 home win against Wakefield in the first match of the season and during which they reached their first Yorkshire Cup Final for 18 years. Admittedly each round was a struggle, a 6-5 win at Dewsbury, a 5-5 draw at Hunslet before winning the replay comfortably 33-18, then a 16-15 win at Bradford before losing 11-22 at Wakefield to Leeds. Cas had to play in the preliminary round in the Floodlit Competition beating Wakefield 15-11 away and 18-0 at home, but then lost their unbeaten record in this competition as they lost 7-10 at Wigan but their first League defeat didn’t until mid-November 13-15 away to Hull KR. Cas also lost 0-5 at Hull 3 weeks later and 5-14 at Leeds on Boxing Day and again 3-18 at home at the end of January but only lost once more in all competitions in th next 8 matches. The Challenge Cup run started with a routine 19-7 win at Hunslet but was followed by two home wins against the heavy guns of Wigan 12-8 after snow had been cleared from the pitch, and then Leeds 9-5. The week before the Semifinal at Headingley Cas with the Cup on their mind lost 8-12 at York, and didn’t start too well against Wakefield. Cas were actually losing 5-10 before Mick Redfearn kicked 3 goals to give Cas the lead with little time to spare before Alan Hardisty sealed the match 16-10 with a last minute try. Three days later Cas beat Wakefield again 13-4 in the League at Belle Vue before ending their League campaign with 3 successive surprising defeats, 13-16 at Featherstone, and home defeats to Hull KR and Hunslet until order was restored with a 23-2 win at Bramley as Cas finished 4th with 50 points from their 34 matches. In the Championship Playoffs Cas disposed of Hull 14-10 and Swinton 50-8 both at home and then beat runners-up St Helens away 18-6 in the Semifinal. On to Wembley before a record crowd of 97,939 and Cas were never behind as they won 11-6 with tries from Keith Howe, Alan Hardisty and Keith Hepworth.
But that wasn’t the end of the story, because in a bruising encounter with Leeds at Odsal Cas were only minutes away from recording a Cup and League double as they led 14-11 only for Leeds to score a late try to bring the scores level, but Bev Risman scored the conversion.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 24 Apr 2020, 00:08

The big signing of the 1969/70 season was Bill Kirkbride a Cumbrian forward from Halifax, but there were others such as Alan Ackroyd, Tony Dean, Glen Knight, and a trio for the future, Gary Stephens, Sammy Lloyd and Steve ‘Knocker’ Norton. But first Cas made an erratic start, being knocked out of the Yorkshire Cup in the First Round at Hull 4-30 and after winning at Wakefield 16-0, at Featherstone 19-7 and Leeds at home 11-2 they somehow managed to lose at both York and Bramley. However the 9-3 home win over St Helens started a sequence of only 2 defeats in the next 11 League matches including a splendid 29-13 home win over Wigan. 1n the Floodlit Competition Cas again had to play in the Prellmlnary Round beating Huddersfield 18-10 away and 19-2 at home, then Salford away 16-12 and Leeds at home 9-7, but somewhat surprisingly were beaten 11-12 at home in the Semifinal to Leigh. Huddersfield then sprang a surprise in the League by beating Cas 12-5 at Wheldon Road and Cas then lost the Boxing Day derby at Leeds 0-8. But Cas then lost only once more in the next 18 matches(14 in the League) and that wasn’t until Easter Monday at home to Featherstone 14-22. That League sequence included a double over Salford and an 11-10 win at Wigan. The other 4 matches were in the Challenge Cup which started with a 15-0 home win over Hull, a 14-4 win at Barrow, a 15-0 home win over Salford, and an amazing 6-3 Semifinal win at Swinton over St Helens.
The scoreline included an unconverted try by Saints, but 3 drop goals worth 2 points each in those days from Cas. In today’s scoring system Cas would have lost 3-4. Cas finished 2nd in the League with 51 points from their 34 matches though 9 points behind Leeds. In the Championship Playoffs Cas beat Huddersfield 17-7 at home and Featherstone 15-3 at home, but could only draw the Semifinal match at Wheldon Road to St Helens 9-9 but were ordered to play the replay at Knowsley Road only 2 days later and 5 days before the Cup Final. Today of course the game would have been settled by playing extra time, but so tight was the schedule for matches that Cas decided to select the reserve team for the replay, and they did the club proud by actually leading at one point but eventually lost 12-21. On to the Cup Final in front of a crowd of 95,255 on a pitch bare in places Cas beat Wigan 7-2 with a single try from Alan Lowndes from an lan Stenton pass, the Lance Todd Trophy going to Bill Kirkbride. What a climax to the season, successive Challenge Cup wins and the halcyon days of Classy Cas!

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 25 Apr 2020, 19:01

Ron Willett who scored 679 points had retired in 1969 and a year later so did Keith Howe who had scored 109 tries in his 9 seasons, Bill Bryant who had scored 75 tries in his 14 years with Cas. Other notable departures were Jack Austin, David Stephens and Frank Fox. In came John Coventry, Ray Newton and Dennis Fowler as Cas started the 1970/71 season with Alan Hardisty as player/coach and a Challenge Match against St Helens at home with a 19-19 draw. Cas started the campaign with 5 League wins including a double over Halifax, 22-12 away in League and 29-4 at home in the Yorkshire Cup, although they then lost at home to Leeds in the Second Round 7-14. Three League defeats followed as well as a defeat in the First Round of the Floodlit Competition 7-14 at St Helens. The League form was then very patchy right through until February although they did manage to beat Whitehaven away in the First Round of the Challenge Cup 15-0. Then came a run of 7 successive wins starting with a 12-6 home win in the League and progress to the Semifinal of the Challenge Cup with patchy home wins over Keighley 9-6 and Salford 9-8. But despite now having won 13 successive Challenge Cup wins in 3 seasons, it came to an end at Odsal where Cas lost 8-19 in a tryless performance to Leeds. Thereafter Cas only won one more game out of their last 7 matches which ended with a 4-10 away defeat to Wakefield in the First Round of the Championship Playoffs as Cas finished a lowly 12th with only 36 points from their 34 matches.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 25 Apr 2020, 19:54

Harry Poole took over as coach for the 1971/72 season as Alan Hardisty signed for Leeds having scored 206 tries, 78 goals 42 drop goals, a total of 858 points in his 401 appearances. Trevor Bedford, Tony Thomas and Bill Kirkbride all left, and in came George Claughton, Steve Brunyee, Alan Dickinson, Charles Birdsall, Kevin Worsley and Cliff Wallis as Cas made a great start to the season. The Yorkshire Cup ties were all played before the League matches started, and Cas reached the Final with home wins over Batley 24-5, Wakefield 13-10 and Keighley 12-7 but lost at Wakefield to Hull KR 7-11 in the Final. Then came 15 wins and 2 draws with only 2 defeats in the next 19 matches. One of those defeats was surprisingly at home to Huddersfield 7-8 in the First Round of the Floodlit Trophy, and the other at high-flying Bradford 15-36 in the League, but amongst the wins were a fantastic 25-8 win over the New Zealand tourists, and home League wins over St Helens 22-13 and Wakefield 12-5. By the beginning of November Cas were top of the League with 27 points from 15 matches. The season then disintegrated as Cas struggled to beat bottom of the table Hunslet 9-8 in a replay of a new competition, the Player’s Number 6 Trophy. Cas then lost 11-13 at home to Leeds in the Second Round. They won again at Whitehaven 17-0 in the Challenge Cup, but could only draw 8-8 at home
against Warrington in the Second Round and subsequently lost the replay 5-11. The season then petered out as Cas won only 7 of their final 19 League matches to finish 10th with 41 points from their 34 matches. It was a disappointing end to the season although they did win their Championship Playoff First Round tie at Featherstone 18-14, but lost the Second Round match 12-22 at Bradford. The average crowd attendance was 5,889.

User avatar
43s flyer
League One Player
League One Player
Posts: 2413
Joined: 04 Apr 2014, 15:46
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by 43s flyer » 25 Apr 2020, 23:22

Ken Smith wrote: 25 Apr 2020, 19:54 Harry Poole took over as coach for the 1971/72 season as Alan Hardisty signed for Leeds having scored 206 tries, 78 goals 42 drop goals, a total of 858 points in his 401 appearances. Trevor Bedford, Tony Thomas and Bill Kirkbride all left, and in came George Claughton, Steve Brunyee, Alan Dickinson, Charles Birdsall, Kevin Worsley and Cliff Wallis as Cas made a great start to the season. The Yorkshire Cup ties were all played before the League matches started, and Cas reached the Final with home wins over Batley 24-5, Wakefield 13-10 and Keighley 12-7 but lost at Wakefield to Hull KR 7-11 in the Final. Then came 15 wins and 2 draws with only 2 defeats in the next 19 matches. One of those defeats was surprisingly at home to Huddersfield 7-8 in the First Round of the Floodlit Trophy, and the other at high-flying Bradford 15-36 in the League, but amongst the wins were a fantastic 25-8 win over the New Zealand tourists, and home League wins over St Helens 22-13 and Wakefield 12-5. By the beginning of November Cas were top of the League with 27 points from 15 matches. The season then disintegrated as Cas struggled to beat bottom of the table Hunslet 9-8 in a replay of a new competition, the Player’s Number 6 Trophy. Cas then lost 11-13 at home to Leeds in the Second Round. They won again at Whitehaven 17-0 in the Challenge Cup, but could only draw 8-8 at home
against Warrington in the Second Round and subsequently lost the replay 5-11. The season then petered out as Cas won only 7 of their final 19 League matches to finish 10th with 41 points from their 34 matches. It was a disappointing end to the season although they did win their Championship Playoff First Round tie at Featherstone 18-14, but lost the Second Round match 12-22 at Bradford. The average crowd attendance was 5,889.
Ken, it was Keith Not Kevin Worsley

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 26 Apr 2020, 06:50

43s flyer
Thanks for the amendment. I’m pleased that some folk are alert and hopefully enjoying my blogs.

User avatar
43s flyer
League One Player
League One Player
Posts: 2413
Joined: 04 Apr 2014, 15:46
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by 43s flyer » 26 Apr 2020, 09:43

Ken Smith wrote: 26 Apr 2020, 06:50 43s flyer
Thanks for the amendment. I’m pleased that some folk are alert and hopefully enjoying my blogs.
Keep them coming Ken, enjoy reliving the past.

Ken Smith
Academy Player
Academy Player
Posts: 336
Joined: 21 Aug 2017, 06:44
Contact:

Re: History of Rugby League in Castleford

Post by Ken Smith » 26 Apr 2020, 14:13

Sadly for Cas Keith Hepworth joined Leeds for the 1972/73 campaign to join Chuck, Derek Edwards went to Keighley and Dougie Walton retired, but under the new coach John Sheridan, Gary Brook, James Huddlestone and more significantly John Joyner emerged although Cas lost their first 4 matches including a 10-35 thumping at Wakefield and a First Round 5-19 defeat at Dewsbury in the Yorkshire Cup. However Cas then won 15 of their next 17 League matches, the only defeats being at Rochdale who completed an astonishing League double over Cas and Leeds. However because of their low finishing position of the previous season, it has to be said that the fixtures for this particular season had been kind to Cas. Hull KR knocked Cas out of the Players Number 6 Trophy 20-10 in the First Round, and although Cas won 15-9 at Huddersfield in the Floodlit Trophy they were beaten 7-9 at Oldham in the Second Round. The Challenge Cup then started another long sequence of successive wins, 13 in all of which 4 were in the Cup. First of all Cas beat Swinton at home 13-9, then Hunslet away 39-0, followed by a 25-11 Quarterfinal success at home to Oldham. The 9 League wins in that sequence included home wins over Leeds 22-16 and away wins over Hull KR 11-10 and their neighbours Hull 12-11. However the Challenge Cup Semifinal at Headingley against 2nd placed Featherstone was a match too far and Cas were swamped 3-17. Cas then lost their last 3 League matches at Keighley, home to Wakefield 5-13 and away at Featherstone 0-15 to finish 7th with 50 points from their 34 matches when in fact another 4 points would have placed them runners-up. In the Championship Playoffs Cas beat Hull KR 24-12 at home but then lost 5-30 at Leeds in the Second Round. I had already purchased my Cup Final tickets so felt obliged to support Fev in the Final and I have to admit they were outstanding as they demolished Bradford Northern 33-14.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot], orrsome, Tamworth Tiger, The Fox and 77 guests