Warrington Wolves 24 Castleford Tigers 10 Guardian verdict

That was a comment from Steve Price after this game and he has a point.

It was by no means an ugly victory for The Wire, but after the defeat in Catalans there was a need to get back to basics.

An overall completion rate of 93 per cent is pretty impressive and shows they did just that. It did not need to be flash – just effective.

> 'Performance showed how much we care,' says Price

Game management was an area that Warrington fell short in plenty of times last season but it really shone through on this occasion, particularly after Castleford threatened to build a bit of momentum following Greg Minikin’s try on the hour.

Price certainly rolled the dice with his team selection, but he was rewarded with some excellent displays by those who came in.

It was easy to tell Jake Mamo has been itching for this chance to shine. Aside from his two good finishes in the left corner, his yardage carries were lively and demonstrated some of his electric speed and footwork.

> Match action photo gallery

Toby King looked refreshed having been restored to the centres and came up with several good defensive contributions – a try-saving effort to dislodge the ball from Michael Shenton after the break stood out in particular.

Ben Westwood played his part on a bench full of power and impact – and that is where the game appeared to be won and lost.

Looking at the respective interchanges, Castleford were only able to name two power options while The Wire rolled out the heavy artillery.

Having four forwards on the bench is something many observers have said should have happened in Perpignan and this game showed exactly why.

Wolves were distinctly second-best for 20 minutes, but that all changed once Joe Philbin, Ben Murdoch-Masila and Westwood entered the fray.

They were beaten up physically in France. Now it was time for them to dish out the physical punishment and the Tigers were overwhelmed at times.

If there is to be one gripe, it is an age-old one – discipline.

The penalty count stacked up against them once again and it is an area the team and coaches need to clamp down on.

Continuing to give teams a free ride up the field will cripple them in the long run. Their defence held up impressively on this occasion against a free-scoring side, but that will not always be the case.

Still, a positive night for Warrington – capped off by the surprise return of Ben Currie.

It was a real curveball from Price, but it was fantastic to see him get a full 80 minutes under his belt.

He will get stronger as time goes on. Hopefully his teammates will follow suit.

> 'Nights like this make the dark days worthwhile' – Ben Currie on his surprise comeback

INTERESTING NOTES:

. Stefan Ratchford passes 1,000 career points

. Steve Price’s 100th game as a senior head coach – 42 for Wire, 58 for St George Illawarra

. First Super League tries in a Warrington shirt for Jake Mamo

. Wire beat Castleford at home for first time since August 2016

MATCH FACTS:

Super League, Round Five

Thursday, March 7, 2019

Warrington Wolves…24 Castleford Tigers…10

Wolves: Stefan Ratchford; Josh Charnley, Toby King, Bryson Goodwin, Jake Mamo; Blake Austin, Declan Patton; Chris Hill, Daryl Clark, Mike Cooper, Jack Hughes, Ben Currie, Lama Tasi. Subs: Ben Murdoch-Masila, Jason Clark, Joe Philbin, Ben Westwood

Tigers: Peter Mata’utia; James Clare, Greg Minikin, Michael Shenton, Greg Eden; Jake Trueman, Jordan Rankin; Liam Watts, Paul McShane, Junior Moors, Jesse Sene-Lefao, Chris Clarkson, Nathan Massey. Subs: Alex Foster, Matt Cook, Tuoyo Egodo, Jacques O’Neill

Scoring: Eden try, 8mins, 0-4; Mamo try, 21mins, 4-4; Mamo try, 27mins, Ratchford goal, 10-4; Hughes try, 37mins, Ratchford goal, 16-4; Ratchford penalty, 43mins, 18-4; Murdoch-Masila try, 51mins, Ratchford goal, 24-4; Minikin try, 59mins, Rankin goal, 24-10

Penalties: Wolves 6 Tigers 9

Referee: Chris Kendall

Attendance: 9,231

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