'Awesome game for us': Ryan Carr reacts to Castleford Tigers' win at Doncaster
Castleford Tigers head coach Ryan Carr felt Saturday's hard-fought Challenge Cup tie against Doncaster was the perfect preparation for Super League.
The Australian got off the mark at the first attempt with a 14-0 win at a rain-soaked Eco-Power Stadium, booking Castleford's place in the fourth round and setting them up for next week's league opener at home to Wigan Warriors.
"It was an awesome game for us," said Carr.
"You take so much out of a game like that. For us to get a really strong opponent with a lot of ex-Super League players in their team, we knew we were going to be in for a tough game – and we got one.
"We spoke all week about belief coming from doing it and not talking about it. We've got to get runs on the board and wins under our belt.
"I'm really pleased with how we played our game. We defended great today.
"We worked hard on our culture and identity all pre-season but you need to get that winning feeling."
Joe Stimson scored the only try of the first half and Blake Taaffe went over to extend Castleford's lead after the interval, with Tom Weaver kicking a penalty to complete a well-earned victory.
Carr expects Taaffe, Weaver and their fellow overseas debutants to be better for a challenging introduction to English rugby league.
"You can talk about it but you've actually got to get out there and experience what a muddy pitch feels like over here on a cold day,” added Carr.
"We were fortunate to draw Donny. It's a good pitch here, whereas some others have taken a beating in the rain.
"The boys will take a lot out of it."