Do you feel the weekend break has freshened everyone up?

It does feel that way.

I can certainly tell from my own personal experience that I am a lot fresher.

All the players (apart from a couple of kids in the Under 19s) had a three-day break, and if everyone is feeling like me, I’ll be happy.

We’d obviously have much rather been involved in the Challenge Cup last weekend, but we weren’t and we’ve got to make sure we make the most of it.

It was vital for us to use this enforced break as wisely as we could, both in terms of giving the players a break and using the extra time to work on the areas that still need to be improved.

We’ll see on Sunday whether we got that right.

And you obviously know you’re going to have to play well to beat Castleford, aren’t you?

Yes, without a doubt.

They’re playing very well and have a lot of confidence in what they’re doing. They also have people playing well who are important to them.

So it has all the makings of a very good game.

As a Cas lad, I’m pleased to see Daryl Powell doing the excellent job he is.

But, hopefully, he’ll find the job a bit too hard this weekend!

Is the key to their success this year the fact they are working so well as a team, just like you were 12 months ago?

They are playing well as a team.

We’re still playing as a team, but we’re just not doing it well enough.

We’re not completing our sets as we should be doing or competing for long enough periods in games.

But we still know that when we do start playing well again we’ll cause problems for any team in the competition.

Although we haven’t hit our straps yet, we remain a very confident group and know our best is still to come.

As a group, we’re well aware about what people are saying about us and how we’re just not the force we were this time last year.

We are the first to accept our performances aren’t right up there at the moment.

But the positive for us is the fact we’re only two League points behind where we were last season when we went on to lift the Super League Leaders’ Shields, so all is definitely not lost!

The club are making a big effort to promote the Under 19s and Under 16s double-header against Castleford Tigers at the YMCA on Saturday. How important is that for the boys?

It’s very important, because these young kids deserve as much support as possible.

There’s a lot of talent in both teams, and I know the fans who support them recognise the fact.

For the Under 16s, for instance, it’s no longer a case of putting out a team hoping to do well, it’s putting out a team expecting to do well.

The 16s are led by Matty English, who is the current captain of the England Under 16s, while last year Liam Johnson was also captain of both.

Liam’s continued to develop since then, and even though his now too old for the 16s, he’s more than holding his own at Under 19s level.

That means he’s competing against players two years older, and he doesn’t look out of place.

He spent time in pre-season training with the Super League squad, along with 19s teammates Tyler Dickinson and Jared Simpson, and they’re all developing tremendously.

I’m looking forward to seeing how both sides play on Saturday, and I hope I’ll be joined by a big turn-out of fans.

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