Former Castleford Tigers prop Nathan Massey follows through on Featherstone Rovers pledge despite Championship status

The veteran forward is fresh from a testimonial season after dedicating 19 years of his career to hometown club Castleford.

Massey appeared in three major finals and lifted the League Leaders' Shield during his 302-game spell with the Tigers.

The 34-year-old links up with Featherstone after they missed out on promotion to Super League despite finishing 12 points clear at the top of the Championship.

Featherstone have lost star names such as Joey Leilua and Elijah Taylor since crashing out of the play-offs against London Broncos but Massey will join Ben Reynolds and Greg Minikin among the fresh faces at Post Office Road next season.

Massey, who enjoyed a loan spell with Rovers in 2008, was happy to follow through on his pledge to join the club.

"I committed to Featherstone previously with Super League in mind and wanted to commit to the project even though we're still in the Championship," he said.

"I'll be an older head in the squad and have had plenty of experience of big games in Super League. I had the luxury of playing in a Grand Final and two Challenge Cup finals, so hopefully I can pass my experience on to the younger lads in the squad.

"The hunger is still there otherwise I wouldn't be here. It's a bit different coming into a part-time environment but it's something I'm looking forward to."