Rugby League: Castleford Tigers 22 - 14 Salford Red Devils
Another defeat for Salford leaves them stranded at the bottom of the Super League table
Castleford Tigers secured their first Super League victory of the season with a hard-fought win over fellow strugglers Salford Red Devils.
In a tense encounter between the division’s bottom two sides, it was Judah Rimbu’s late try, five minutes from time, that ultimately sealed the points for the hosts.
Tex Hoy contributed five successful kicks, while Liam Horne and Muizz Mustapha both crossed the whitewash to ensure Castleford got off the mark for the campaign.
Despite tries from Ryan Brierley and Kallum Watkins, coupled with three successful conversions from Marc Sneyd, Salford remain winless and rooted to the foot of the table.
The opening 20 minutes were littered with errors, but the game sparked into life when Salford captain Watkins was shown a yellow card for a late challenge on Daejarn Asi.
Castleford quickly took advantage of their numerical superiority. Within a minute of Watkins’ departure, debutant Daniel Okoro shrugged off a tackle before offloading to Horne, who darted through a gap to open the scoring.
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However, Salford responded well and, with Watkins back on the field, the visitors produced the try of the match. A sublime offload from the England international found Brierley, who showed impressive footwork to cut inside and elude Fletcher Rooney before touching down.
Buoyed by their equaliser, Salford finished the first half on the front foot. Sneyd's perfectly weighted 40-20 kick handed them excellent field position, but Castleford's defence held firm — just about — as Kai Morgan was stopped inches short of the line on the final tackle.
Castleford thought they had regained the lead moments after the restart when Rimbu touched down, but video referee Ben Thaler ruled out the score after Mustapha was judged to have knocked on in the build-up.
Undeterred, the Tigers made amends just three minutes later. Rimbu turned provider once again, this time feeding Mustapha, who powered his way over the line from close range. Hoy’s third successful kick of the evening extended Castleford’s lead to eight points.
Yet the Red Devils refused to fold. Morgan’s piercing line break created space for Watkins to score his side’s second try, and Sneyd’s precise conversion reduced the deficit to just two points.
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Castleford thought they had re-established breathing space when Josh Simms crossed in the corner following excellent work from Rimbu. However, replays showed the winger failed to ground the ball cleanly, instead making contact with his leg.
Salford continued to apply pressure and they were rewarded with a penalty after successfully overturning two on-field decisions in quick succession. Sneyd kept his composure from the tee, not only levelling the score at 14-14 but also surpassing 2,500 career Super League points in the process.
But with five minutes remaining, Castleford found a decisive breakthrough. Rimbu, outstanding throughout, spotted a gap in Salford’s defensive line and wriggled through to score his side’s third try. Hoy converted before adding a late penalty to make sure of the victory — one that lifted Castleford off the foot of the table and left Salford still searching for their first win of the season.
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