Castleford boss Lee Radford confirms Ryan Hampshire return

Castleford coach Lee Radford has confirmed that Ryan Hampshire will make his return from injury against Hull KR this weekend.

Hampshire, 27, signed with the club on a one-year deal earlier this year. He had been a free agent following his exit from Wakefield at the end of last season.

However, the former Wigan man suffered a broken hand while featuring for the club’s reserves in his return.

Now almost two months later, Radford confirmed that Hampshire will make his return and will start at full-back for Tigers. They host Tony Smith’s Hull KR on Sunday at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle.

Ryan Hampshire return confirmed

“He’s good to go,” Radford said during his pre-match press conference.

“He’s looked sharp in training. I think having that week off has helped his confidence with his hand. He was a little bit cautious with it. But he’s had some impacts on there and hopefully his confidence will be high.

“He’ll be starting at full-back.

“He’s looked good at training and I’ve been a fan of him previously when he was at Wakefield. He’s dangerous out the back and gives you a running threat and a pass threat.”

Danny Richardson update

The Castleford boss also confirmed that half-back Danny Richardson is set to return to the field.

Richardson, 25, suffered a neck injury in the club’s first game of the season. Almost three months later, Richardson is set to return for the reserves side.

“Danny has got the all clear. He’ll feature in the reserves on Saturday all being well,” Radford confirmed.

On injured winger Greg Eden, he continued:  “Greg Eden is the same scenario. He pulled his calf and has been in rehab and is now starting to slowly build it up and get his strength back.”

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