Cas boy Burrow tips Tigers to rival Rhinos

Leeds veteran Rob Burrow believes that his hometown club of Castleford Tigers could be set to be the Rhinos’ major Yorkshire rivals over the coming seasons.

While most Yorkshire clubs see the Rhinos as rivals to a certain extent, the demise of Bradford Bulls has left something of a derby-shaped hole in Leeds’ fixture calendar.

But Burrow thinks that Daryl Powell’s Cas have quality in depth this season, and could well be on the verge of some serious success.

“I’m from Castleford. I never supported Cas growing up, I’ve always been a Leeds fan,” he told Love Rugby League.

“But I really appreciate it’s really important to have a good team in Cas. I don’t think Cas would be recognised if it wasn’t for the rugby league.

“To see them doing really well and going in the right direction is really good.

“Obviously they’ve got a world class coach there in Daryl Powell.

“The town’s got a really good buzz. I live in Pontefract now, but I go to Cas quite often.

“People are happy that the team’s doing well, and they really are going well.

“They’re going to be stronger again this year, I think they’re probably a team to watch out for, and might be up for silverware.

“They’ve been good for a number of years under Daryl Powell, and they just get better and better every year.

“They’ve added people like Zak Hardaker, we all know what he can do.

“If they get this new stadium, it could take rugby league in that town to the next level,” he said.

“I’m a big rugby league fan, and it’s terrible what has happened at Bradford. I do really feel for the players and the staff there.

“Hopefully that can get resolved quickly.

“But the game’s about derbies, in any sport, it feeds on rivalries.

“As a proud Cas lad, it’s great to see them doing well. I just hope they don’t do too well against us!”

Burrow also thinks that the Tigers have probably had the best of the exchanges between the two teams in recent seasons too.

“So I think Leeds and Cas, it’s so competitive – in the last few years, Cas are probably on top with wins over us,” he said.

“What comes with that is two teams playing really well, nobody knows who’s going to win, it’s that tight between the teams.

“So I think that adds to it. I’m sure they’ll be looked on as even bigger rivals than they have been in past years.”