He spent eight years there as head coach but Daryl Powell insists he hasn’t given much thought to his first Castleford return.
That’s because he’s too caught up trying to get current club Warrington’s season back on track. Powell led Castleford to top spot for the only time in their history and a maiden Grand Final in 2017. It's sure to be emotional when he walks out at Wheldon Road on Saturday.
But the 56-year-old maintained: “I haven’t thought about it too much. I suppose I will over the next 24 hours. It’s going to be an interesting return for me. I had some great times there. I love the place. You can’t be there for that long and not.
“And obviously that club means a lot to me. But I’ll put all that behind me. It’s a really important game for us and that takes precedence over any emotion I might have going back there. It’s a key game.”
Powell has endured a horrendous start to life as Wolves boss since leaving Cas at the end of last season. Tipped to challenge, they have lost 11 of their 17 games yet are still only four points behind Tigers in the sixth and final play-off place. And they produced their best display of the year to beat 2021 League Leaders Catalans at Magic Weekend on Sunday to raise hopes they can still rescue something.
Powell, who grew up supporting Saturday's opponents, admitted: “It is a four-pointer with Cas. You lose and you’re six points away from them. You win it’s two. It is important. It’s crucial for us, a pivotal game. We want to step up and get in the six - and Cas are one of those in there at the moment.”
Wolves, whose second-row Oli Holmes also makes his first return to Wheldon Road, are without Gareth Widdop who dislocated a shoulder against Catalans. The England stand-off, reportedly set to join Castleford in 2023, feared being ruled out for the rest of the season. But Powell, whose side defeated Tigers 34-10 at Halliwell Jones Stadium in February, said he doesn’t require surgery. Widdop, 33, could be back in as little as six weeks although the coach still believes it is “unlikely” Widdop will pull on the jersey again.
* Hull FC and Nigeria Rugby League (NRLA) have entered a ground-breaking partnership which will see the formation of the first of three Hull FC International Development Centres.
