Castleford Tigers fans will have to wait a few more weeks to see some of their key players back out on the field, with a number of men still not being back to full fitness.
Semi Valemei and Ashton Golding are two players who won’t be featuring this week against Wigan Warriors, with the boss revealing the pair are still struggling with their respective issues.
Valemei missed out on the 21-man squad selection against Wakefield due to concussion protocols, but he won’t be returning just yet as he deals with a separate issue.
Golding was named in the 21, but was absent from the matchday 17. He is nursing a prior knock picked up whilst at Huddersfield Giants, and a recent flare up has seen the club take extra care in his return to the field.
Speaking to the press today [Thursday] boss Ryan Carr gave a run-down of the current injury situation, as he also spoke about the effect that two loanees being recalled has had on the squad.
He revealed: “Golding picked up a calf strain and it’s taken longer than we’d hoped, because he’d had a bit of history with that.
Semi, his knee has been playing up on him so we’re just trying to make sure that we can get him fixed quick.
Another player who has been out of the side for the past few matches is Mikaele Ravalawa, the Fijian international and former NRL player who has struggled to adapt to Super League.
Confirming the winger’s current status, Carr said: “‘Rava’ has picked up a lower leg injury, so we’ve just been trying to get some treatment on that for him.”
Prop Brad Singleton is currently celebrating his testimonial year, however he has made just one appearance in 2026, with that being the opening game against Wigan.
Carr revealed that Singleton is dealing with some personal issues at the minute, and is being fully supported by the club.
As well as those four, Castleford have lost Tom Forber and Jake Thewlis after the two have been recalled from their respective loan deals.
Carr said: “When you’ve got two players that are in your starting team that get recalled back to their team straight after the game and aren’t in review the next day, it’s just it’s pretty hard to… create accountability in those situations.
“But, we’re not in that anymore. We’ve got no loan players at the moment and those guys did a great job for us, but at the end of the day that they’re another club’s players.”
Jazz Tevaga’s sin-bin, Hull KR’s underrated star and very early Man of Steel candidates – Click here to watch the latest episode of the Serious About Rugby League Show.
Castleford Tigers veteran set for return
One man who could make his return this week, and it would come as a great boost for Carr’s side, is Liam Hood.
Not only does he slot straight back into the position that Forber has vacated, but his leadership and experience makes him one of the most influential players in the Tigers’ dressing room.
Hood has had a knee clean out to hopefully put an end to some previous niggles that he has been playing through. However, that required surgery and as a result he has missed the last three matches.
Commenting on his return, Carr said: “I think ‘Hoody’ should be back in the 21-man squad. He has to tick a few more boxes on his return from injury there but it will be good to get him back in that 21-man squad and then it’s pretty much similar. We can’t really name much more than the 21 at the moment.
“He’s a good leader for us, ‘Hoody’, he’s played some really good games for us this year and we have missed him a lot for many different reasons. Not only what he does in the game but what he brings to the team and his leadership and confidence he gives to the boys around him.
“He’s a super competitor so I’m really looking forward to getting him back.”
