'A worry': interim-boss Andy Last talks Castleford Tigers form ahead of Leeds Rhinos and hopes for top job
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The derby will be Last’s second game in caretaker charge since Lee Radford’s departure, following a 36-6 loss at Huddersfield Giants six days earlier.
He is keen to take the job on a full-time basis, but stressed: “The club are working their way through the applications which have come in and there’s been plenty of them.
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Hide Ad“It’s a club that’s held in high regard, one with great history and one I am proud to lead at this moment in time.
“Hopefully I’ll get the opportunity to lead it moving forward, but the best way I can confirm the opportunity I’ve got at the moment is by getting the players to play better.
“Ultimately they will decide whether I get the job. Hopefully they play well against Leeds, we get the result and that might get me a week closer to getting the job.”
Rhinos are aiming for a third successive win, which would lift them, for 24 hours, to third in Betfred Super League.
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Hide AdTigers are yet to win this term, but 12 months ago Rhinos were also searching for a new head-coach after a poor start to the campaign.
They went on to reach the Grand Final and Last insisted Tigers can take inspiration from that.
He said: “It is a worry at the moment because we’ve played four games and got four losses, but the season’s a long one.
“If we can get a couple of good performances and a couple of wins, the tweak is capable of catching fire and going on a good run.
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Hide Ad“We are taking it one game at a time and we can’t look past Leeds because they’ve had two very good results.”
“They showed what they are about in the second-half against Wakefield last week, they stayed in the arm wrestle and then a bit of quality shone through for them to score 26 unanswered points.
“They are a very, very good side. I have the utmost respect for Leeds as a club, but we’ve got to make sure we deliver on Thursday.”