Castleford Tigers boss Danny Ward drops hint over future ahead of pivotal night

The Tigers took a huge step towards safety after taking advantage of Wakefield Trinity's loss to Catalans Dragons by beating Hull FC to move four points clear of their relegation rivals with only two rounds remaining.

After inheriting a team that were only off the bottom of the table on points difference following five straight defeats, Ward has guided Castleford to two priceless wins in his four matches in charge.

The 43-year-old does not yet know whether he will be staying on beyond the end of his short-term contract.

"The job is not done," he said ahead of Friday's trip to Wigan Warriors. "We're not safe.

"Those conversations are all on hold. It's fine by me because I'm just concentrating on the games ahead of me.

"I've loved being back in the game and a full-time environment. I'm enjoying the stress and challenges that come with being a head coach at Super League level.

"It's a great job and a great place to be."

Ward has been based in Surrey since his time with London Broncos and left behind his family to join Castleford's fight for survival.

The former Broncos boss has made no secret of his desire to return to Super League on a permanent basis.

"I'm really enjoying my time here," he said.

"I want to be coaching in Super League. It's where I want to be and see myself.

"The other decisions around moving and things like that will be conversations with the family. They're enjoying me being up here doing what I love.

"I've not really thought about it or spoke about it too much because we're not quite there yet."

Ward has moved back into his family home in Dewsbury with his mum and dad, former Leeds player and coach David.

When asked whether that could be a more permanent arrangement, Ward said with a smile: "I stayed at my mum and dad's for 23 years and wouldn't want to do a shift like that again.

"Whatever comes ahead of us, you get through. Whatever life throws at you, you take on that challenge and get through it as a family.

"It's easily been doable."

Should Wakefield fail to beat Leigh Leopards on Friday night, Castleford's safety would be confirmed regardless of the result at Wigan.

Ward has guarded his team against any complacency after insisting he will not be paying attention to events at Leigh.

"No I won't do," he said. “I'm fully focused on Wigan.

"We can't worry about what's happening elsewhere; we can just take care of what we're doing.

"Wigan are playing really well at the minute and are the form team in the comp. They've got some fantastic players and going to Wigan is always hard.

"We should be excited about these challenges and playing the top teams. If you can't get excited about going to Wigan, you're in the wrong game.

"We've spoken about backing up a win with another strong performance. That's been our downfall this year."