The reason for on-loan centre Ben Davies’ rapid return to parent club St Helens has been revealed by Castleford Tigers coach Danny McGuire.
Davies made his Castleford debut as a substitute in the Tigers’ golden-point extra-time loss at Hull KR.
Castleford play Saints at the Jungle on Saturday and McGuire said Davies would have been allowed by the visitors to take part, but opted not to.
“It was a strange one,” McGuire admitted at his weekly preview press conference today. “We had him in on a two-week loan and he had the opportunity to stay and play against Saints, but he wasn’t quite comfortable with the situation. I get that.
“We can’t afford to have anybody in this environment and in our group that’s not 100 per cent in.
“He had some doubts about playing against his teammates and maybe going back there the week after, so I kind of took it out of his hand and sort of told him to pretty much go back to St Helens.
“He was good for us while he was here. That short period of time is not ideal in these situations, but we’ve got a few injuries in the outside-backs and need some cover in there.”
Tigers have brought in winger Lee Kershaw on loan from Hull KR and he is set to feature this week.
“I thought he was really good for London last year in a tough environment,” McGuire said. “He is really enjoying his time at KR, but he’s at that stage of his career where he needs to play.
“We are light in the outside-backs at the minute with Jason Qareqare, Louis Senior going down and Will Tate.
“Some of our younger players are not quite ready at the minute to step into there so we needed some cover, he became available and it happened daily quickly. He joined the group and I think he has slotted in really well.”
🤝 Danny McGuire names his squad to face the Saints!
🎟️ https://t.co/YsHjNGl7zl#COYF • @sixescricketuk pic.twitter.com/WbVcPbFc29
— Castleford Tigers (@CTRLFC) February 20, 2025
