Chris Chester delivered another brutal verdict on the state of his Castleford Tigers squad after they were comprehensively beaten once again on Thursday evening, this time by Leigh Leopards.
The Tigers had no answer for a ruthless and eye-catching display from Adrian Lam’s side, with the Leopards winning 46-6 and moving up to third in Super League with minimal fuss.
And Chester did not hold back any punches when asked to pick apart the loss – taking aim at the way his players are approaching game-day, his disappointment at recent results – and also dropped a significant recruitment hint, too.
Here is everything Chester said – with our analysis, too.
“We made it easy for them. The very first set they marched us down the field, off an offload. We defended well for three plays and then spent the next 20 minutes either defending our try-line or stood under the posts.
“Like Jon [Wilkin] said, we were toast at half-time and we got a bit of a reaction in the second half but it sums us up at the minute as a club. I can’t wait, and I’m sure the fans can’t wait, for the season to end.
“I said it in the press, these four weeks are a dress rehearsal. I know Ryan [Carr] is watching the game, he’s watched the last four weeks and he knows he’s got a hell of a job to turn things around.
“It’s my job to supply him with the best players available and there’ll be some significant annocunemnts, another tomorrow and five or six more over the coming weeks. I’m disappointed with us physically. We spoke about Leigh’s gameplay, it’s Route A, it’s through the middle and we just couldn’t handle the intensity and the ruck speed. That’s what’s really disappointing.
“It’s very similar to when I walked in at Wakefield Trinity. Very similar. But I knew what kind of job I was taking on and I didn’t envisage being the coach for the last eight games, whatever it is. But I’m really confident in the people we’ve put together for next year on and off the field that will be a hell of a better version of Castleford Tigers and one the Castleford town deserves.
“I don’t know what’s turning up sometimes on game-day. They’re giving everything in training. We’re really down on troops but we’ve got to get away from feeling sorry for ourselves and start being a hell of a lot better individually.”
Analysis
Perhaps the most noteworthy thing to take from Chester’s post-match debrief was that by the end of Friday, there will be another big name announced through the door in terms of 2026 arrivals. Mikaele Ravalawa, Semi Valemei, Jack Ashworth, Renouf Atoni and Liam Hood are all done deals: but all yet to be formally announced. Expect one of those to get confirmed for 2026.
But what’s more damning if you drill down into it is the acceptance the job is tougher than he expected, and that his players are performing in training, but effectively falling apart when it comes to games. That is a huge, huge worry: and underlines why so many of this squad will be moved on – or at least, attempted to be moved on.
A penny for Carr’s thoughts, too. He would have been forgiven for watching from behind his sofa in that first 25 minutes when Castleford were utterly abject. Leigh were good, but they were made to look world-class here by a Tigers side that is some way short of Super League standard.
Chester has frequently – and without much subtlety – warned these players these last few weeks are a chance to prove him, Carr and the Tigers hierarchy that they have a chance to prove they belong at the club in 2026. Right now, is anyone making a compelling case? It’s hard to argue.
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