Castleford Tigers 16 Wakefield Trinity 4: Grim viewing but no extra points for artistic impression in relegation battle

The Wheldon Road clash between struggling neighbours Castleford Tigers and Wakefield Trinity was never likely to be pretty, nor did it need to be on a night when only the result mattered.

It was grim viewing for the neutral but Castleford will not care after moving four points clear of their rivals to ease their early-season relegation fears.

For Andy Last, who replaced Lee Radford on a temporary basis a month ago, a win was imperative to keep alive his hopes of landing the permanent job.

Castleford are still a long way from competing for the play-offs on Thursday's evidence but they can at least start to look up the table rather than down after a hellish start to the year.

Paul McShane's third-minute try and a double from Greg Eden were enough to see off a Wakefield team that had scored only 43 points in their opening seven games.

Samisoni Langi's second-half score ensured Trinity avoided an embarrassing fifth shutout of the year but Mark Applegarth's wait for a first win goes on.

Although there are 19 rounds remaining, it is hard to make a case for Wakefield – a team significantly weaker than last season – pulling off another great escape.

Of all the off-season losses, there is a strong argument that Jacob Miller was the biggest.

The Australian half-back was instrumental in Trinity's late-season revival in 2022, which could be traced back to an inspired performance at Wheldon Road.

Miller ran the show that night but soon left for Castleford and was never truly replaced, piling more responsibility on the shoulders of Mason Lino.

To say Wakefield have struggled for points since he ended his eight-year stay would be an understatement – and their profligacy was evident in another hugely frustrating outing.

Trinity had a fair share of possession and field position but lacked the conviction to break Castleford down.

Clear-cut chances were few and far between, Bureta Faraimo snuffing out the danger when Langi threatened to put Innes Senior over in the corner before the Tigers crowded out Morgan Smith on the last tackle at the end of the next set.

When Will Dagger was forced into touch minutes later, it was evident that Castleford were ready to grant Last his wish of fighting fire with fire after he accused them of being 'outderbied' last July.

The visitors dug in defensively themselves but when points are hard to come by, a couple of lapses can make all the difference.

With much of the focus on Miller, it was Jack Broadbent who opened Wakefield up for the first try.

The former Leeds Rhinos starlet – one of the shining lights for Castleford this year – beat Matty Ashurst with a silky step and although he was dragged down short of the line, the damage had been done.

McShane picked up from dummy-half on the next play to force his way over and settle the home side's nerves.

The Tigers spent much of the next half an hour defending but had some breathing space after accepting a gift.

Trinity were on the front foot when Dagger got his hands on the ball on the last tackle but he drilled a kick straight into the hands of McShane.

The hooker carried the ball from his own line up to halfway before finding Eden who brushed off Lee Kershaw to race clear.

Dagger compounded his error by kicking the restart out on the full but Wakefield limited the damage going into half-time, even after McShane forced a drop-out.

Trinity knew they had no room for error as the teams emerged for the second half and there was a noticeable lift from the visitors.

After benefiting from two knock-ons and a penalty, Wakefield eventually found a way through thanks to Langi's powerful finish out wide.

Crucially for a team that struggle for points, Lino missed the touchline conversion to leave Trinity eight behind.

Dagger's difficult night continued when he threw a pass into touch in a promising situation, while Faraimo lost the ball just short of the line at the other end.

Wakefield had renewed hope after Joe Westerman was sin-binned for a trip on Jay Pitts but another error by Dagger left them under the pump and they could not keep Castleford out.

After debutant Luis Johnson went close, McShane atoned for a poor kick by stripping the ball back from Lino, a blow Trinity failed to recover from.

The Tigers quickly sent the ball out to the left where Eden showcased his finishing ability to put the home side out of sight.

Westerman returned to give Castleford a full complement for the closing stages and they needed all the manpower they could get as Wakefield threw caution to the wind.

But to continue a theme that sees Trinity fighting fires at the wrong end of Super League once again, they could not turn their promise into points.

Castleford Tigers: Evalds, Faraimo, Fonua, Turner, Eden, Broadbent, Miller, Massey, McShane, Matagi, Griffin, Mellor, Westerman. Substitutes: Lawler, Edwards, Mustapha, Johnson.

Wakefield Trinity: Dagger, Kershaw, Lyne, Langi, Senior, Smith, Lino, Mason, Hood, Whitbread, Hewitt, Ashurst, Pitts. Substitutes: Crowther, Kay, Proctor, Atoni.

Referee: Marcus Griffiths.