Huddersfield (0) 6
Tries: Cudjoe Goals: Hodgson
Castleford (12) 13
Tries: Dixon, McGoldrick Goals: Dixon 2 Drops: Chase
 McGoldrick scored the Tigers' second try |
Castleford produced a superb second-half defensive display to beat a disjointed Huddersfield and claim their first win in five matches. Tries from Kirk Dixon and Ryan McGoldrick, the latter being converted, and a Dixon penalty gave the Tigers a deserved 12-0 half-time lead. The home side gave themselves a chance 15 minutes from time when Leroy Cudjoe went over in the corner. But a Rangi Chase drop goal for the Tigers put the game beyond the Giants. Castleford have twice suffered defeat at the hands of Huddersfield this season, and this hard-fought victory goes some way towards avenging these, particularly the heartbreaking 16-14 Challenge Cup defeat three weeks ago at the Galpharm Stadium. Full-back Richard Owen fed the onrushing Joe Westerman into a defensive gap in the Giants defence on halfway and clear, allowing the loose forward to feed right winger Dixon to finish strongly in the corner for the game's first try on four minutes.  | 606: DEBATE |
Despite having the lion's share of possession, Huddersfield were out of sorts and went further behind on 16 minutes when full-back Brett Hodgson's pass was picked off by Tigers scrum-half McGoldrick and he was left with an unopposed 40-metre run to the line, with Dixon adding a simple conversion. Dixon extended his side's lead on the stroke of half-time with a penalty after substitute Danny Sculthorpe, making his home debut for the Giants, was punished for holding down in the tackle. After the break, the Giants sought to get a foothold in the game from the off but the visitors' defence was resolute, making a mockery of the fragility that saw the Tigers suffer heavy recent defeats by Warrington and St Helens. However, Castleford offered little in attack and were always walking a fine line clinging to a slender lead against an opponent who have proven on a number of occasions this season how dangerous they can be on the offensive. Such fears were heightened with 15 minutes to go when Simon Finnigan and Stephen Wild combined and fed Cudjoe to finish in the corner, with Hodgson adding the conversion to cut the deficit to six points. Huddersfield pushed for a late leveller but were unable to break through, allowing Tigers hooker Chase to make sure of the points with a drop-goal three minutes from the end to give the visitors their first win at the Galpharm in five years.
Huddersfield coach Nathan Brown: "We keep committing the same errors week after week. Sometimes we play well enough to get away with it. We had that many line breaks, compared to the opposition. They obviously scrambled well and on the back of that we took some poor decisions. "I think the game was lost in the first five minutes. Our approach to the game was all wrong. Looking to shift the ball on the second set of six at the back of the field showed that we showed no respect for Castleford at all. "When you are completing at 60%, it gets to the stage where it becomes unacceptable. We've got to get a little bit smarter." Castleford coach Terry Matterson: "It was a bit scary there for a while. It felt like deja vu. I'm really pleased we hung in there. Defensively we were pretty good. "We had to get back on the winners list. It's been a long time, we forgot how to sing the song. "I'm really pleased with Rangi (Chase). He came a fair way tonight. It's tough playing half when you're not used to it but he had good support from Sione Faumuina and Ryan McGoldrick."
Huddersfield: B. Hodgson, Cudjoe, Lolesi, Whaturia, D. Hodgson, Brown, Robinson, Mason, Moore, D. Griffin, Wild, Crabtree, Finnigan.
Replacements: Faiumu, Fulton, Raleigh, Sculthorpe. Castleford: Owen, Wainwright, Shenton, Widders, Dixon, Faumuina, McGoldrick, Sargent, Chase, Huby, Ferres, Jones, Westerman.
Replacements: Higgins, Clayton, Netherton, Boyle. Referee: S Ganson (St Helens)
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