McDermott: We don’t want to lose to Cas again

Despite both teams already securing their semi-final spot, Leeds head coach Brian McDermott says his team are eager to beat Castleford tomorrow night.

The Rhinos have lost their last seven matches against the Tigers, including a 66-10 hammering at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle in early March.

And speaking to the media ahead of Friday’s clash at the same venue, McDermott says there will be no love lost ahead of their fourth meeting this season.

“I know they don’t like us,” he said. “I meet some people from Castleford sometimes and they are not shy in telling you what they think about Leeds.

“We’ve been beat three times by them this season and you might think there’s not much in this game because we are in the top four, but we want to secure second spot and we don’t want to lose again to them.”

Despite making it clear he wanted to beat the Tigers, McDermott was also full of praise for Daryl Powell’s side who still sit 10 points clear of the Rhinos at the top of the table.

“They’ve got the league leaders’ shield and done it comfortably. This season hasn’t come out of the blue by them, their offence has been brilliant for a number of years but their defence backs it up now.

“Players like Luke Gale and Paul McShane are playing with great confidence and their progress is a continuation of what started since Daryl (Powell) got there.”