Castleford need to improve if we make the play-offs, says Daryl Powell
Castleford coach Daryl Powell knows his side will have to majorly improve should they manage to secure a Super League play-off place.
The Tigers face a nervous wait to determine if they’ve made the top five after a defeat at Wigan.
They started with Hull ahead of their fixtures and, if the Black and Whites beat St Helens on Friday as a result of this reduction, their season will be over.
„We turned up tonight wanting to keep it in our own hands but we were not great enough,” Powell told Sky Sports.
„It is disappointing but we will see what happens – if Hull watch off St Helens then fair play to them.
„For us, well we will need to enhance a fair bit on that anyway – particularly the second half. Our attacking game was bad all night, it was just dull but Wigan defended nicely. We’re not good enough at the minute when groups are defending well against us”
Castleford had Jesse Sene-Lefao to moving in with all the knees on Oliver Partington sent in the second half.
Powell stated:”We lost our subject a bit and I just explained to them that we can not be doing that – Jesse would not have supposed to do so. I don’t believe there was any intent from him – he is a fairly man and does not head out to do anything similar to that.
„I really don’t believe there was a lot of contact, I believed his knee struck the floor.”
Wigan trainer Adrian Lam paid tribute to the defence of his side at the desk because the Warriors second position.
George Williams, Zak Hardaker, Joe Greenwood, Oliver Gildart and Morgan Smithies crossed for tries as they install a home play-off tie Friday.
„We were not great with the ball tonight but I thought we had been incredibly great,” said Lam.
„The defence pleased me the most, that and having two senior players in Ben Flower and Sean O’Loughlin backagain. I’m very happy they got throughout the game.”
Lam confessed the clash with Castleford has been the perfect preparation for the play-offs.
„I mentioned to them at the onset of the week that this is the kind of game which we want and need,” the Warriors trainer stated.
„I believed it would be down to two things, we prepped that it would be a two-point game plus it actually was half-time.
„Our try-line defence continues to be outstanding. We had been under the pump for a long time and then we scored and moved up the other end. That is brilliant so I was very proud of these .”
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