Castleford Tigers v Wigan Warriors: Powell expecting more international call-ups

THEY have three players in the England squad to face Samoa next week '“ more than any other club '“ but Castleford Tigers coach Daryl Powell sees no reason why there will not be more come the end-of-season World Cup.
Castleford's Mike McMeeken.Castleford's Mike McMeeken.
Castleford's Mike McMeeken.

Scrum-half Luke Gale, full-back Zak Hardaker and uncapped second-row Mike McMeeken all fly out to Sydney after tomorrow night’s Super League game with Wigan Warriors.

Castleford have four players in England’s elite training squad but international coach Wayne Bennett agreed he would take no more than three from any one Super League club given they will miss next week’s league fixtures.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Tigers captain Michael Shenton is the unlucky one which is unfortunate given his fine form.

Powell admitted: “Potentially Shenny could have been in too. We’ve got more players than anyone else in the squad so we’ve got to be proud about that. The club is recognised with international players which is great; it creates a tough situation for us in losing three of our best players for a game but you want to have your players recognised.”

Powell believes other Castleford players – who won eight of their opening nine games before suffering successive defeats at St Helens and Hull FC – could be in the reckoning later, too.

“I think there’s some who have been outstanding, particularly at the start of the year,” said the former Great Britain centre.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Adam Milner has been really good and he’ll be looking to respond after a little dip.

“Michael Shenton hasn’t been picked, Paul McShane has been good at hooker and we’ve got good players all across the park.

“Whether they can break into that elite squad for the World Cup remains to be seen but there’s the quality and ambition there.”

Gale will undergo his head injury test today after being sidelined in the first half at Hull but he should be okay to face a Wigan side they recently beat.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

However, Powell said: “They’re in better form than the last time we played because they’ve won three straight since. It’s a tough challenge and you’ve got to take your chances when they come as they don’t concede a whole heap of points. We’ve lost three games by a total of seven points though so even when we’re not playing well, we’re not far away.

“There’s no panic here; it’s just about tidying up the areas where we’ve not been that efficient.”