Ben Roberts slots a drop goal in the final play to down St Helens
Last Updated: 19/06/15 9:30am
Ben Roberts scored a dramatic drop goal in the final play to snatch a 25-24 win for Castleford against St Helens.
Roberts had knocked the ball on in front of his own poles with just over a minute remaining, but James Roby knocked on at the scrum which gave Castleford one last play. They moved the ball right to the Saints line before, on the final play of the game, Roberts squeezed a drop goal through the poles to snatch an unlikely win for the home side.
The lead had changed hands plenty of times as Saints kept stretching a lead while Castleford kept coming back. St Helens looked to have sealed it as they took a two-point lead into the final moments of the game, but a penalty to Castleford gave Luke Gale a chance to level the score which he duly did, and it was moments later that the last-second drama unfolded in front of a vociferous crowd.
Castleford were kept in the game thanks to tries from the returning Justin Carney, Denny Solomona, Jake Webster and Matt Cook before Roberts stole the show with his composed boot.
In a frenetic first half Castleford came out firing in front of their home fans. Saints conceded two penalties in a row before they were made to pay through the superb Carney, who scored despite attention from three covering defenders, all of whom reached him in time but were unable to stop him from crossing the line.
Saints were able to hit back almost immediately - a theme throughout the encounter - through a clever kick from Travis Burns, which was followed effectively by Luke Walsh who slid over under the poles. The easy conversion gave the visitors a 6-4 lead.
Scott Moore then gave a penalty away which gave Saints vital possession deep inside the opposition half. Alex Walmsley ran an effective line off the shoulder of Walsh, and crossed to punish the lack of discipline from Castleford. Moore was subsequently replaced by his coach.
Saints looked to come close to scoring before the ball was spilled right in front of the opposition line by Jordan Turner. Solomona scooped the ball up and ran the length of the field to close the gap to 12-10 in a dazzling solo effort.
Saints were able to extend their lead ahead of half time through another Tigers mistake, this time from Carney who knocked on in front of his own line, as they took an eight-point lead into the break.
The Tigers took the lead early in the second half through tries from Webster and Cook, but Saints hit back once again through an inspired kick from Turner, which bounced fortunately for a chasing Shannon McDonnell, who gave his side the lead after the video referee confirmed he was not in front of the kicker.
Gale then leveled the scoring before Roberts fired over the kick that snatched the win in the final play.
