Castleford 34 Warrington 14: Outstanding second half earns praise from Powell

Junior Moors on the attack for Castleford Tigers.

Warrington, who were top of First Utility Super League at the start of the Magic Weekend, led 14-0 after half an hour, but Tigers dominated the rest of the game to win 34-14.

“The second half, I thought, was absolutely outstanding, that’s as good as you will see,” Powell said.

“We had so much control about us and I thought our defensive edge was great, which we didn’t have in the first half.

“To be able to flip a game like we did there, it gives you confidence and it gives you a knowledge that whatever is happening to you, you can turn a game around, which is obviously crucial for any team.”

Tigers are now just five points outside the top-four and Powell added: “We’ve hit a decent bit of form on the back of getting some players back.

“There’s a confidence about us now and it’s just about being consistent.

“It’s round 15 today and we’ve got a bit of a way to go, but we’ll give ourselves a chance if we keep turning up with performances like that, particularly the second half.”

Powell admitted the opening 30 minutes was “scary” for his side, who conceded three tries and saw Warrington miss several good chances.

Warrington won 56-12 when the teams met at HJ Stadium in April and Powell feared a similar outcome.

”I thought they started outstandingly well, so credit there,” said the Tigers boss. “We were a little bit slow out of the blocks. They were winning contact consistently and it sort of reminded me of when we played them at their place.

“They were just too good for us and it took us a while.

“We got some confidence after that 10 minutes just before half-time and then our second half was superb, but that initial 30 minutes was a scary period I thought.”

Stand-off Ben Roberts returned from a long-term foot injury, but suffered a recurrence and went off before half-time. Powell said he will not try to talk full-back Luke Dorn out of retiring at the end of the season, despite five tries in two games since returning from injury.