'Shows what we're capable of': Gareth Widdop keen to shine for Castleford Tigers v Warrington Wolves

Widdop joined Tigers in the off-season after three seasons at Warrington. That ended with an unhappy stint under former Castleford coach Daryl Powell last term when the Cheshire side finished second from bottom in Betfred Super League.

They will travel to the Jungle this week as unbeaten league leaders, but Tigers are on a high after beating Leeds Rhinos last time out and Widdop insisted building on that is what matters most.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a point to prove,” Widdop insisted. “It is enjoyable coming up against your old teammates and I’ve got a fair few in that team and a couple of Aussie mates who I played with over there and are now at Warrington.

“For me it’s just about going out there and doing a job for my teammates at Castleford and this club and making sure I put in a good performance.”

The victory over Leeds was Tigers’ first of 2023, at the fifth attempt. Widdop reflected: “It was a great win for us.

“After a slow start we needed to go out there and perform for each other and I thought we did that.

“It shows what we are capable of if we do the little things well. The most important thing now is to go out and back that performance up against another good team. We started the season a bit slow, but hopefully we can kick on now.”

Castleford pinned high hopes on their new half-back pairing of Widdop and Jacob Miller, who was signed from Wakefield Trinity ahead of this season.

That alliance is still a work in progress, but Widdop feels they are starting to find their feet as a partnership.

“It’s really good,” he said. “He is a great player and a good person and Macca [hooker Paul McShane] being back last week certainly helped.

“Hopefully we can stay on the paddock together as much as possible. The more games we play, the stronger that combination will become.”