Muizz Mustapha hints at roles Lee Radford and ex-Leeds Rhinos men played in leading him to Castleford Tigers

Earlier tonight, Castleford announced their latest signing for 2023.

The Tigers are expected to announce the signing of star halfbacks Gareth Widdop and Jacob Miller from Warrington and Wakefield respectively.

However, the bulk of Castleford’s recruitment has been aimed at young British players with an eye for the future.

This came with Radford revealing as such after Castleford’s season was ended by defeat at Headingley in Round 27 in a shootout for the play-offs and was reiterated by the Castleford boss recently on the Eddie and Stevo podcast in which he all but confirmed the arrival of Widdop and Miller.

Nonetheless, there has been a bigger focus on youth at Castleford with the likes of Jack Broadbent set to join the Tigers in 2023.

However, one of Broadbent’s former Leeds teammates has become the latest official signing by the Tigers with the club signing him on a one-year deal ahead of 2023 with an option for a second year.

Speaking to the club website after the announcement, the prop explained what tempted him to the Jungle hinting that knowing so many of the squad through his time at the Rhinos as well as Radford’s focus on the future saw him decide to join the Tigers in 2023.

He said: “I know Sutty (Alex Sutcliffe), Mellor (Alex Mellor), Cal (Callum McLelland) and Brad Martin, I came through the Scholarship with Brad actually, so there’s quite a few that I already know.

“When I spoke to Radders (Lee Radford) he told me about the plans and how the club is looking forward to the future. Everyone else I’ve met so far too has been great, genuine lads.”

Mustapha and those young players set to join him in Radford’s vision will not only be stars of next season but also the future as Castleford look to build big for the next decade.