Hull KR 36 Castleford Tigers 6: Relentless Rovers reclaim top spot in Super League with professional display

The hosts could have been forgiven for having an eye on tougher challenges to come but they got the job done with the minimum of fuss.

Rovers overcame an early setback to take an 18-6 lead into half-time and enjoyed a late flurry of tries to complete a ninth victory in 10 matches.

Peters has transformed KR into a winning machine, even when they are not at their best.

The Robins have shown an ability to win in all kinds of ways this season, which is something they will need to draw on during a challenging run of fixtures that will see Peters' men face Catalans Dragons, St Helens, Salford Red Devils, Wigan Warriors and Leigh Leopards in consecutive weeks.

Should they emerge through the other side in credit, the League Leaders' Shield and a first Super League trophy could be within their grasp by the time they host Leeds Rhinos in the final round.

For now, they can reflect on a professional job well done, albeit against a team whose season has long since been over.

Castleford have already achieved one objective after topping last season's points tally with nine rounds to spare and are playing the long game at the start of the Craig Lingard era.

This result will sting but they have shown enough under Lingard to suggest they are heading in the right direction.

Their cause at Craven Park was not helped by an injury crisis that forced Lingard to field back-rowers Alex Mellor and Luis Johnson in the centres.

Castleford turned their weakness into a strength just six minutes in when Mellor powered his way over out wide at the end of a slick move.

But that was as good as it got for the Tigers as Rovers showed their superiority, albeit without hitting the heights of their previous outing at Warrington Wolves.

Niall Evalds opened up his old side with a classy reverse flick pass that was finished by Peta Hiku in a training ground move already seen in 2024.

Rovers set up camp on the Castleford line and were celebrating a second try when Tyrone May's flat pass put Joe Burgess over on the last tackle to break the visitors' resistance.

Elie El-Zakhem created a rare opportunity for the Tigers that went begging with the Robins stretched before James Batchelor dropped the ball at the other end with the tryline at his mercy.

Rovers did not have to wait much longer for their next try but only after surviving a scare following a break from deep by Tex Hoy.

The former Hull FC full-back lacked support and Castleford were shown how to do it a minute later, Mikey Lewis starting and finishing a move that saw Oliver Gildart use his pace to get on the outside of a flailing Johnson.

With the Tigers glancing at the clock, the Robins scored again in the final few minutes of the half.

Matt Parcell exchanged passes with Dean Hadley before Kelepi Tanginoa and Gildart combined to give Ryan Hall the chance to brush aside Hoy and extend his Super League tryscoring record.

But for Lewis' wayward goalkicking, Rovers would have been out of sight by the interval.

The half-back was on target just minutes into the second half after Joe Westerman was penalised for a high tackle to give KR the three-score lead they craved but the floodgates did not open as anticipated.

Castleford had lost Nixon Putt to a yellow card for a tip tackle and saw Cain Robb forced off with a shoulder injury yet showed their new-found resilience to hang in there, helped by an act of dissent by Jesse Sue that cost him 10 minutes in the sin bin.

Jason Qareqare raced back to deny Lewis following a break by Jez Litten and Tanginoa bombed a certain try with a poor pass to the supporting Gildart after tearing away down the left flank.

Rovers rediscovered their clinical edge in the closing stages to add gloss to the scoreline.

Burgess finished a flowing team move to make his a double before turning provider for Evalds after racing into open space from the restart.

May completed the scoring after exchanging passes with half-back partner Lewis to round off another good night for the Robins.

Hull KR: Evalds, Burgess, Hiku, Gildart, Hall, May, Lewis, Sue, Parcell, Whitbread, Hadley, Batchelor, Minchella. Substitutes: Litten, Luckley, Storton, Tanginoa.

Tries: Hiku (10), Burgess (18, 65), Lewis (31), Hall (36), Evalds (67), May (73)

Goals: Lewis 4/8

Sin bin: Sue (50)

Castleford Tigers: Hoy, Qareqare, Johnson, Mellor, I Senior, Milnes, Miller, Mustapha, Horne, Watts, El-Zakhem, Putt, Westerman. Substitutes: Namo, Robb, Hill, Hindmarsh.

Tries: Mellor (6)

Goals: Milnes 1/1

Sin bin: Putt (42)

Referee: Liam Rush.