Giants chief Anderson plays down battle between Brough and Chase

HUDDERSFIELD Giants coach Paul Anderson insists tomorrow’s televised game with Castleford Tigers is far more than an England showdown between the clubs’ respective scrum-halves.

The Wheldon Road contest will inevitably draw focus on the intriguing battle for the England No 7 jersey.

Castleford’s Rangi Chase is the incumbent and goes up against Danny Brough, the enigmatic former Tiger whom many feel should be leading England’s World Cup charge yet is not even in Steve McNamara’s 30-man elite training squad.

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When asked if he thinks the Giants captain can still force his way in, Anderson replied: “That is not for me to answer.

“It is for the coach that picks the England team. Macca may think that Rangi Chase is a better player than Danny Brough.

“But what you shouldn’t do is put it as a Danny Brough v Rangi Chase thing because there is a fair few halves in that squad so I don’t think there is a pecking order.

“What I have said all along is that you want to be picked at the end of the year to play in the games rather than go to a couple of (training) camps.

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“I’d rather be picked in the squad that play the games rather than to do all of these team-building things.”

Neither does Anderson think everything at Castleford – who are rooted to the bottom of Super League without a win in eight games – revolves around former Man of Steel Chase.

“No, not at all, they have some good players there like Daryl Clark at nine, (Michael) Shenton doing his bit and (Weller) Hauraki playing okay for them, too,” he maintained. “They have some good players mixed in around. Jordan Tansey is getting a lot of credit down there but we are not worried too much about Cas, we are worried about ourselves.

“At some point, it is going to click for them. Every team has a losing streak at some point but they eventually break it.

“Our challenge is for it not to be this week against us.”

Four years after leaving Castleford for Salford City Reds, prop Ryan Boyle has re-signed for the club.

He joins until the end of 2014, with Jake Emmitt moving the other way, and comes straight in.