Huddersfield Giants boss Ian Watson comes out fighting as he discusses sack talk, pressure and belief

One of the pre-season title favourites, the Giants are 10th in Super League going into tomorrow's home clash with fellow strugglers Castleford Tigers.

Expectations were high after an eye-catching recruitment drive on the back of a hugely promising campaign which saw Watson's men reach the Challenge Cup final and finish third in the league.

A run of four straight defeats – including a cup exit at the hands of Salford Red Devils – leaves Watson facing a fight to save Huddersfield's season.

Asked whether he felt he could deliver success with the club's backing, Watson replied: "I know I will and I know the group will.

"It's a good group and is going in the right direction. The club will be in a better position for everything we've done so far.

"I've got 100 per cent confidence in that."

A small section of the club's support have called for Watson to be sacked in recent weeks.

He has not had any assurances from the Huddersfield board over his position but believes they are willing to adopt a patient approach.

"I've not really had those discussions," said Watson, who took over at the end of 2020.

"I know the board were fully behind the idea of what we wanted to build.

"I was pretty clear when I first came in that it's not about miracles. If anything last year probably jumped a year or two forward in terms of the level of expectation we had for the group.

"The first year we wanted to learn what that group was about and what we needed to improve.

"We weren't brought in because there were no issues; we were brought in because there was an issue.

"The second year is trying to fix it up and improve on that. I think we did that in abundance, probably too well because the level of expectation has gone skyrocketing through the roof.

"We've probably got caught up in that as coaches, as players and as a club. When you look at the facts of it, we've had one good year in about eight years.

"We need to be aware of that and make sure we build. It's pointless me losing my head and going off on one complaining about everything and making excuses; it's about learning from it and being better."

Watson is drawing on a similar experience during his time in charge of Salford.

By the end of his spell at the AJ Bell Stadium, the 46-year-old had led the club to both finals.

"You're aware of it because people tell you," he said on the discontent among the Huddersfield fans. "I don't read it.

"It doesn't bother me. I've had it before. I remember at Salford where we finished fourth in the league and got to the semi-final of the Challenge Cup and at the end of the year we lost a couple of players like Michael Dobson in a similar situation (to the Giants losing the likes of Ricky Leutele and Danny Levi).

"The year after the quality of character we lost meant that we had a really up and down season and ended up in the middle eights.

"We sorted it out halfway through the season, got back to what we were about and the year after got to a Grand Final.

"I've seen it done before. It's been worse than this and you come through the other side.

"You learn a hell of a lot about yourself and what you've done wrong, and learn about things your team have done right and wrong as well.

"There's no-one in a situation like that who can say they haven't done things wrong. I'll put my hand up and say there are certain things I've done wrong and the players will be the same."

The John Smith's Stadium date with Castleford offers Huddersfield the chance to kick-start their season.

Watson is relishing the challenge of firing the Giants up the table.

Asked whether he was feeling extra pressure as a coach, he replied: "I can't say no – but in some ways no.

"We spoke about the level of expectation earlier on in the season and I said it's about what we do this year and it comes from hard work. I've never changed my stance on that.

"Do we want to compete to win a competition? One hundred per cent we do. Every team is the same.

"But you look at how many teams have actually won the competition over the years. Look at a team like Warrington who spend massively but have never won a Grand Final.

"It's a difficult thing to do. You need to build a team. We were heading and still are heading in the right way with the group we've got.

"There's pressure everywhere you look. Sport is built on pressure, whether you're sat at the bottom end of the table or the top.

"The one thing you can do is embrace it and accept it as a challenge rather than let it drag you down."