Lee Radford identifies why Castleford Tigers lost in ‘disappointing’ performance defeat to Salford Red Devils

Castleford Tigers went down 26-16 at home to the Salford Red Devils tonight – a shock result considering where many had predicted both sides to finish in Super League in 2022.

For Lee Radford, the Tigers weren’t at the races for most of the game as the former Hull FC head coach identified Marc Sneyd as the driving force behind Salford’s win.

“We were second-best in a lot of departments,” Radford told BBC Sport.

“Unfortunately for us, the 7 was outstanding tonight for them – his composure and his kicking game were really difficult to handle.

“Our energy was disappointing – our kick chase, line speed, kick pressure, our line speed, there were some more opportunities to get some more heat on him.

“It looked like a team who had a couple of friendlies and another that had four and looked more comfortable then we did.”

Radford was also keen to improve on a number of areas going forward.

“I thought we looked tidy from 20 to 30 minutes when we got some roll on had some good quick off-loads and a quick ruck.

“We looked scratchy on the tryline and on last plays as well.

“The good thing about these early rounds is we found a bit about ourselves as we’ve not played Super League opposition.

“We will certainly get better in these areas.”

The Castleford boss was asked about Bureta Faraimo’s yellow card for a heavy hit on Salford debutant Shane Wright.

“I’ll have to a look at the sinbin, obviously it was a fair old contact from B (Bureta).”