Ben Roberts released by Castleford Tigers

Castleford have mutually agreed to release utility back Ben Roberts from his contract with immediate effect.

The 33-year-old Samoan international has struggled with injury this season, making just one substitute appearance.

Roberts signed for the Tigers in 2015 and played 78 times in four seasons at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle.

He was a prominent part of the team that won the League Leaders’ Shield in 2017 and will be perhaps best remembered for his winning drop-goal against St Helens in 2015.

Speaking to castlefordtigers.com, Roberts said: “First and foremost, I want to thank God for giving me and my family this opportunity.

“To the fans who have supported me and the boys for the last four years, I would like to thank you for making the experience of playing for the Tigers one that me and my family will never forget.

“To my teammates who I see as life-long friends, I wish you all the success for the rest of the season and beyond.”

Castleford head coach Daryl Powell added: “I think it’s fair to say it’s been frustrating for both Benny and ourselves that he hasn’t been able to get on the field as often as he’d like and unfortunately that looked increasingly unlikely.”

“We therefore felt it was best to come to an agreement between ourselves so that we could all move forward.”