Myler treble throws Cas to the Wolves

Warrington 54 Castleford 3

Castleford's four-match winning run came shuddering to a halt yesterday in an exhilarating game in which attack was pretty much the only form of defence.

Tony Smith chose to rest Lee Briers with a couple of minor knocks, but he was hardly missed as Richie Myler scored a hat-trick of tries and had a part in three others in his second game back after a two-month injury absence.

"He's already shown he's got the talent, but he can develop into a top-class half with flair, who can also get his team around the park," said Smith.

"It was a good open game of rugby league, because both sides like to throw the ball around."

The Wolves opened up with a dazzling try, triggered by David Solomona's trademark one-handed pass, carried on by equally slick handling from Louis Anderson and Ryan Atkins and finished off by Chris Riley for his 22nd of the season.

The downside of being Solomona is that you occasionally put a pass on the ground and it was one of those that set up Castleford's response, scored by Kirk Dixon from Ryan McGoldrick's pass.

Castleford had come to Warrington determined to try to play like Warrington, but their expansive approach failed to pay off.

Instead, the Wolves hit them with four tries in the second quarter of the match, starting with Michael Monaghan's little kick for Myler. Adrian Morley''s extravagant dummy opened the way for his try, followed by Myler's beautifully weighted kick for Atkins.

Immediately before the break, Monaghan's dummy and pass to Myler gave the scrum-half his second and Warrington were as good as home. Cas continued to concentrate on attacking rugby rather than damage limitation and they got their reward when Rangi Chase's exquisite pass sent Westerman behind the sticks.

That spurred Warrington into a riposte from Richie Mathers, who is Cas-bound next season, and Chris Hicks. Cas still had some flamboyant offence up their sleeves, with Michael Wainwright, Ryan Clayton and Westerman all going over.

Solomona's alarming burst of pace and Simon Grix's kick for Myler made sure that Cas did not get too close, with Ben Westwood – kicking in place of Briers – landing nine from nine, although Steve Snitch had the last word for Cas.

"We played some wonderful football," said his coach, Terry Matterson. "But it was a game too many for us."

Warrington Mathers; Hicks, King, Atkins, Riley; Grix, Myler; Morley, Monaghan, Carvell, L Anderson, Westwood, Solomona. Substitutes used Wood, Cooper, V Anderson, Clarke.

Castleford McGoldrick; Dixon, Ferres, Thompson, Wainwright; Widders, Chase; Huby, Hudson, Jackson, Snitch, Clayton, Westerman. Substitutes used Sargent, Jones, Milner, Walker.

Referee P Bentham.

*Huddersfield announced at half-time in their 30-12 victory over Crusaders that their Australian coach, Nathan Brown, will remain at the helm next season. In May, Brown declared his intention to return to his homeland for family reasons.