Castleford Tigers boss Danny McGuire reacted to his side’s loss to Wakefield Trinity and spoke on the club’s quota choices after signing Tom Amone.
In the first match of Super League’s Rival Rounds, Castleford travelled to face Wakefield Trinity and lost 13-12 with the Tigers suffering defeat away to their rivals in the comp for the first time in 12 years.
Having led 12-0 at half-time, it was a devastating result but one that Tigers’ coach Danny McGuire said that he was “alright with” as the Castleford boss outlined the processes his side had gone through.
McGuire would also speak on the decision he and those at the club will have to make after signing former Leigh Leopards man Tom Amone, meaning the club will have to cut one of their current seven overseas quota players.
“I’m alright with it” – What Danny McGuire said about Castleford Tigers’ loss to Wakefield Trinity
FULL TIME. pic.twitter.com/mSdSmqpgFb
— Castleford Tigers (@CTRLFC) April 17, 2025
Reacting post-match and speaking with BBC Radio Leeds, McGuire admitted: “I’m obviously disappointed we didn’t get a result, but really proud of the performance.
“Everything we’ve been speaking about and trying to work on, we put into practice but second half, they had momentum and they had territory and we battled and we stuck in there and it was ugly at times.”
McGuire would even admit that despite the defeat, he was “alright with it”, explaining: “We didn’t get the result, so it’s really hard for me to say anything because I hate losing. I hate losing and this game is all about winning. We train and we practice and we put ourselves through all the stress to get a result, to win. And we didn’t get it tonight.
“I’m going to go against everything that my brain is telling me. I’m alright with it, because of some of the things that we did, some of the passion that we showed, some of the commitment that we showed, and even some of the skill that we showed.”
How Castleford will solve Tom Amone quota issue
✈️ “AMONE is in the Building” ✈️
Welcome to Castleford Tigers #COYF pic.twitter.com/x4g3P4I5WV— Castleford Tigers (@CTRLFC) April 18, 2025
The Castleford boss was also asked about new signing Tom Amone and specifically how the Tigers would fit the Australian on their quota, with the club currently boasting a full seven.
Sylvester Namo was the only one of Castleford’s overseas players not to feature against Wakefield, and McGuire was asked if that was an admission that he could be the man to make way.
To that, he responded: “No, he just didn’t get selected today and there’s still a little bit going on behind the scenes and that.
“I don’t think that’s been fully decided as yet but yeah, he’s obviously not in the team at the minute. He’s a great kid and he’s been really good for us. I suppose that’ll all get sorted in the next few days.”
As for Amone, McGuire confirmed: “I think he’s on a plane as we speak, yeah. He’s en route, so he’ll link up with the players tomorrow.
“He’s going to be part of our review and see what we’re about tomorrow, with a view to getting him out there next week.”
