Castleford Tigers boosted by long-awaited return of star player

Castleford Tigers have confirmed their squad to face London Broncos this weekend and it sees Danny Richardson included for the first time in over a year following his major injury.

The Tigers are set for their second pre-season friendly of 2024 after handing out a hammering to Keighley Cougars during Jake Webster’s testimonial match last week.

Castleford ran out as 54-0 victors over the Cougars in what would be Webster’s final ever game, the centre even being denied late on sending boos around the ground.

It should be a much stiffer test for Craig Lingard’s side this week with the Tigers taking on Super League opposition in the shape of newly-promoted London Broncos.

The game will serve as the Broncos’ first since their Championship playoff final win in the South of France when they beat Toulouse to secure promotion.

All eyes will be on Castleford though as they’ve named a player in their squad for the first time in over a year, marking a major comeback and possibly setting the team up for a strong season.

Danny Richardson to return for Castleford Tigers

That man is of course playmaker Danny Richardson who last played a rugby league match in August of 2022 with the 26-year-old missing all of the 2023 campaign.

Richardson tore both his ACL and MCL and only returned to light training in June 2023 highlighting the serious nature of the injury.

He has now been named in a Castleford squad for the first time in almost 18 months and fans will be eager to see how he fares when he takes to the field.

The Tigers are one of just a few Super League teams yet to confirm their squad numbers for 2024 meaning that there is no indication if Richardson will be a starter this season, with most starting halves typically being awarded the six or seven shirt.

Either way, the fact that he is back in the squad and available, even if as a bench option to begin the year, is massive news for the club who gave the player a two-year contract extension just before his injury.

Castleford Tigers Squad to face London Broncos

This is the first all Super League clash of 2024 meaning that fans get a chance to see some of the new signings set to grace the competition this coming season and Castleford have named plenty of recruits.

Castleford Tigers have named nine new signings in their squad with the only two not named being Sylvester Namo and Josh Hodson, but otherwise, the new faces look set to debut at the Jungle.

London are yet to name their squad but new signings such as Rhys Kennedy could feature whilst there will be eyes on whether ex-Wakefield Trinity man Lee Kershaw players, the winger having trained with the club recently.

Castleford Tigers Squad to face London Broncos

– George Griffin
– Sam Hall
– George Hill
– Luke Hooley
– Liam Horne
– Luis Johnson
– Samy Kibula
– Brad Martin
– Paul McShane
– Jacob Miller
– Rowan Milnes
– Nixon Putt
– Jason Qareqare
– Danny Richardson
– Cain Robb
– Fletcher Rooney
– Innes Senior
– Josh Simm
– Charbel Tasipale
– Albert Vete
– Joe Westerman
– Sam Wood
– Elie El Zakhem