Daniel Zealey reviews Warrington’s narrow victory over the Castleford Tigers. Here’s how the game went.
MATCH TIMELINE
| Minute | Scoring Play | Score |
| 16th | Goal Danny Richardson (Castleford) | Warrington 0-2 Castleford |
| 26th | Try Tom Lineham (Warrington) | Warrington 4-2 Castleford |
| 45th | Goal Stefan Ratchford (Warrington) | Warrington 6-2 Castleford |
| 52nd | Try Callum Turner (Castleford) | Warrington 6-6 Castleford |
| 53rd | Goal Danny Richardson (Castleford) | Warrington 6-8 Castleford |
| 59th | Goal Stefan Ratchford (Warrington | Warrington 8-8 Castleford |
| 80th | Drop Goal Blake Austin (Warrington) | Warrington 9-8 Castleford |
MATCH SUMMARY
Blake Austin produced a last minute drop goal as Warrington beat Castleford Tigers 9-8.
The match looked difficult to call on paper and it was tight. Danny Richardson opened the scoring when kicking a penalty 16 minutes in for the visitors.
Tom Lineham crossed for the only try in the first half when Toby King raced to the line before Lineham acrobatically finished. Stefan Ratchford missed the kick giving the Wolves a 4-2 lead at half time.
Ratchford added two points five minutes into the second half.
However the Tiger hit back. A spreading move found Callum Turner, who was tackled high by the scrambling Keanan Brand. After sending the decision to the video referee, it was deemed to be a penalty try. Richardson converted to give Castleford a 8-6 lead with 27 minutes remaining.
Warrington hit back with another penalty, levelling the scores with a quarter of the contest left.
After both sides missed numerous attempts, Blake Austin converted a drop goal from around 25 metres out in the final minute to secure the two points for Steve Price’s side.
GAME HIGHLIGHT
The key moment in the match was, of course, the drop goal by Blake Austin. It was vital for Warrington to bounce back from their 36-0 defeat to Leeds. After both Gareth Widdop and Austin had missed for Warrington, the game looked like it was heading to golden point. However, Austin secured the two points.
This win relieves pressure on the Wolves, however, the fact they have not won since July away puts a lot of pressure on Steve Price’s side to beat Hull FC on Thursday. The Black and White have also struggled despite winning this weekend in golden point.
THE RESULT
Warrington Wolves 9
Tries: Lineham
Goals: Ratchford 2
Drop Goals: Austin
Castleford Tigers 8
Tries: Turner
Goals: Richardson 2
SQUADS
Warrington: ย Ratchford, Lineham, King, Brand, Charnley, Austin, Widdop, Hill, Walker, Cooper, Currie, Murdoch-Masila, J. Clark
Interchanges: D. Clark, Philbin, Mamo, Akauola
Castleford Tigers: Rankin, Olpherts, Mata’utia, Shenton, Turner, Trueman, Richardson, Smith, McShane, Griffin, Blair, McMeeken, Massey
Interchanges: Millington, Holmes, Milner, Sene-Lefao
