Peter Smith's half-term report on Castleford Tigers, Leeds Rhinos and Wakefield Trinity

HALF-TIME in this weekend's round of matches will mark the midway point of the regular Betfred Super League season.
Castleford's Jake Trueman.Castleford's Jake Trueman.
Castleford's Jake Trueman.

Sort of.

Warrington Wolves, having played their round 12 fixture in the third week of the season and without a postponed game, are already past half way.

Leeds Rhinos' Richie Myler.Leeds Rhinos' Richie Myler.
Leeds Rhinos' Richie Myler.

In contrast, Leeds Rhinos and Wakefield Trinity have both had one fixture called off and the poor weather so far this season has left Castleford Tigers with two extra games to fit in.

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But all that aside, this is as good a time as any to assess how Castleford, Leeds and Wakefield – who are in alphabetical order in the table at the moment – have fared so far.

Castleford Tigers:

By most standards, Tigers have made an excellent start.

Wakefield's Reece Lyne.Wakefield's Reece Lyne.
Wakefield's Reece Lyne.

Castleford have lost only two of their first nine league matches, one more than this time last year when they went on to finish 10 points clear at the top of the table.

They are fourth, have at least one match in hand on the teams above them and will be level on points with second-placed Wigan if they win at DW Stadium tomorrow.

And the big thing for Cas is, they haven’t played at their best yet. The 41-0 win over hapless Catalans Dragons last weekend was an indication they are heading in the right direction, but generally they have only played well in patches.

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Before the Catalans romp they had won six out of eight and had a negative points difference.

Leeds Rhinos' Richie Myler.Leeds Rhinos' Richie Myler.
Leeds Rhinos' Richie Myler.

Tigers are still finding their best combinations – particularly at full-back and stand-off – and poor conditions haven’t suited them, but they have proved they can grind out relatively tight games.

A top-four finish – both at the end of the regular season and the Super-8s – is well within their grasp and victory at Wigan would have leaders St Helens glancing over their shoulders.

Grade: B – continuing the recent good work.

Leeds Rhinos:

Wakefield's Reece Lyne.Wakefield's Reece Lyne.
Wakefield's Reece Lyne.

Strange to say it about the reigning champions, but this Leeds Rhinos side shows promise.

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They are not the finished article, as last Friday’s defeat by Wigan highlighted, but Rhinos are fifth and capable of climbing at least one place if they play to anything like their potential.

Rhinos have lost three from 10, an identical record to this time last year, despite a lengthy list of injuries, particularly in the front-row.

They are a team in transition, but have handled injuries and the departure of key players much better than two years ago.

Richie Myler has stepped in and done a fine job, but the most encouraging aspect for Leeds is the form of their young players – Ashton Golding, Ash Handley, Jack Walker, Mikolaj Oledzki, Cameron Smith and Josh Walters.

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All have proved they are capable of doing a job in the elite competition and, with some promising rookies emerging at under-16s and under-19s level, Rhinos look in good shape for the future, even if they don’t win anything this year.

Grade: B – showing some good signs.

Wakefield Trinity:

Fine margins are the story of Trinity’s season so far.

After four wins to begin the campaign – their best start to a Super League season – they lost the next five, only to break that run with a stunning victory over Saints last weekend. One converted try the other way would have turned four of those five defeats into wins and secured a draw at Wigan, so Wakefield could be much higher up the table than seventh.

They have work to do to break into the top-four, which would represent an improvement on last year, but last Sunday’s success kept them in the hunt.

Like Castleford, Wakefield have struggled to put an 80-minute performance together, tending to lead at half-time and then fade in the second half.

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But on their day they are defensively as good as most sides in the competition and their attack can be devastating, as four tries in 17 minutes against Saints illustrated.

Wakefield have a deep squad and a big pack, with some outstanding pace in the outside-backs and players like Bill Tupou and Reece Lyne have gone up another level this year.

Grade: B- – good effort, but need to keep working hard.