Leeds reassert the old Yorkshire order

Castleford 6 Leeds 48

(Getty Images)

The old order in West Yorkshire might just be starting to reassert itself, with the early Super League leaders losing their third game in a row.

A resurgent Leeds won with something to spare, despite Cas having long periods camped in their half and three tries disallowed. Although the Tigers sparkled occasionally, especially when Rangi Chase was on the ball, it was the steadier approach of the Rhinos that won the day.

Castleford had a miserable Easter, with two defeats, both narrow and galling in different ways, and the loss of their in-form prop, Craig Huby, with a fractured knee cap. Leeds, on the other hand, won twice, and had Danny McGuire and Jamie Peacock back in their squad after injuries.

Both McGuire and Peacock started on the bench, but that did not delay the Rhinos' impact. They moved the ball upfield and, with the clock still not on two minutes, Kallum Watkins sneaked in at the corner from Paul McShane's pass.

Chase, Cas's player of the season so far, was fired up for the physical side of the game. He rattled all Kevin Sinfield's windows with a ferocious tackle of borderline legality and had an altercation with Brett Delaney after another clash. With the ball, he helped to put Kirk Dixon over for the first of Castleford's non-tries, disallowed when Dixon was held up. Almost immediately, his pass to send Richard Owen in was ruled forward.

Leeds had been forced into permanent defence, but as soon as McGuire entered the fray, he sent Jamie Jones-Buchanan stretching over for the second Rhinos' try.

The Cas crowd were convinced that the world was against them when the Chase-Owen combination was denied again by the sharp-eyed Richard Silverwood. To make matters worse, a rare Leeds foray was rewarded with a penalty for a 12 point half-time lead.

Leeds' relatively straightforward rugby paid off after the break, with Ryan Hall squeezing inside the corner flag from a deft pass from McShane. Cas's fate was sealed when McGuire nipped in for a try. By the time Rob Burrow went in, the gap between the sides was looking huge.

Cas got some reward when Joe Arundel plunged over. McShane got the sixth Leeds try, followed by one from Ian Kirke before Hall's effort.

The Cas coach, Terry Matterson, was scathing about the two tries disallowed for forward passes. "They were wonderful pieces of rugby league," he said. "For them to be chalked off was ridiculous."

Leeds' Brian McDermott was delighted to have Peacock and McGuire. back "They are very influential world-class players," he said.

Castleford: Mathers; Dixon, Thompson, Arundel, Owen; Chase, Orr; Jackson, Milner, Snitch, Jones, Holmes, Ferres. Substitutes used Emmitt, Aspinwall, McGoldrick, Clark.

Leeds: Webb; Watkins, Delaney, Senior, Hall; Sinfield, Burrow; Leuluai, McShane, Bailey, Jones-Buchanan, Clarkson, Ablett. Substitutes used McGuire, Peacock, Cross, Kirke.

Referee: R Silverwood (Mirfield).