A lot has been made of IMG’s attempts to ‘re-imagine’ Super League, with all 36 professional clubs given their indicative gradings towards the end of last year.
Castleford Tigers initially sat in 13th with 12.16 points, outside of the top 12 places needed for a Super League place, but the club did reveal that, following an appeal, a change to their score would have placed them inside the top flight.
Of course, the Tigers are still at risk of dropping down to the Championship if those clubs around them accrue more points before the end of 2024.
But, head coach Craig Lingard has revealed that the club’s hierarchy are confident of being in Super League in 2025.
“The club are really confident with the work they will do off the field that they might even get to a Grade A by the end of the season anyway. There are lots of plans in place to make the improvements,” Lingard said.
“They have a plan of action, they have the boxes they need to tick by a certain time. The attendances is one we don’t know what that will be like but performance and wins will dictate that.
“Everything else is in the club’s control and they can control it off the field. They have got a timeframe on doing that and they are confident that we will move up rather than down.
“They have kept us in the loop, it’s important there is an open dialogue but ultimately my responsibility is on the field. Mark (Grattan, Managing Director) is keeping all the staff up to date with the information.”
Lingard has described the recent planning success for a redeveloped Jungle as “massive”.
“It’s massive and ties in with where we are as a club as a whole at the minute. There seems to be a little bit of a fresh start and this stadium announcement – although it isn’t finalised as it needs to go to Parliament – is reflective and indicative of what we have done in pre-season,” Lingard continued.
“It’s huge for the club, this ground is unique. A lot of the stadiums, they are modern and open and don’t get that atmosphere that old grounds give you.
“Castleford is a real traditional rugby league ground, you are spitting distance between fans and players, the fans are right on top of you and the noise reverberates around the stadium. We want to use that to our advantage.
Of course, every player wants to play Super League and Lingard has revealed “meetings” with Tigers players to nail their futures down amidst previous uncertainty over the club’s grade.
“We have had meetings with players who we want to retain next year who want to know where we will grade next season. We have given the players that information and hopefully there is confidence within the players that we will be a Super League team next season.
“I want to take this club into a new, modern era but retain the authentic atmosphere that Castleford currently has.”
Click here to purchase a digital edition of League Express.
Click here to purchase an online edition of League Express through pocketmags.com.
Click here to listen to our new League Express Podcast.
League Express is widely available from local newsagents across the north of England.
