Saturday 28 June 2014 21:59, UK
Salford head coach Iestyn Harris believes the better side lost a thrilling Super League clash at Castleford as Jake Webster's 80th-minute try gave the Tigers a 14-10 win.
Salford led 10-8 with just seconds of the clash remaining, before Webster crashed over in the corner to secure Castleford a 14-10 victory and keep Salford 12th in the table.
Harris said: "Very frustrating, and very tough to take," he said of the result. "I thought we were the better side, we created the better chances and I was frustrated that we had clean breaks that were slowed down.
"I'm surprised you don't get a yellow card for one of those. I don't think second-half it had too much effect on proceedings, it was greasy in the first-half but we've been gradually getting better defensively for a period of weeks.
"I don't think Castleford could break us down until that final play, but I don't know where all that extra time came from.
I thought we were the better side, we created the better chances and I was frustrated that we had clean breaks that were slowed down. I'm surprised you don't get a yellow card for one of those.
"Having said that there was a big chance when Niall Evalds missed a glorious chance to finish the game off; Luke Dorn took a punt and it came off for Castleford in that we couldn't finish it. If we'd scored that it may well have been game over."
As for Castleford, the last-gasp victory hauls them back up to fourth in the Super League table, and boss Daryl Powell admits his side can count themselves fortunate to get the win.
He said: "Obviously when you account for the fact we've scored on the last play of the game we feel like we've got out of jail a little bit.
"I thought we were in control at 8-0, but it gets like that when you've lost a couple. We came up with a couple of smart plays to get the job done eventually, but on the balance of possession you'd have expected them to win the game.
"However, it's about winning and I thought we did enough to come out on top at the end. The conditions were tough and you need that desperation to win games - and I thought we had that in abundance.
"I thought we had to defend for long periods on our try line - I think they had six or seven sets there in each half - and when that happens it's difficult to defend.
"We found a way to win the game though, and it was a great finish combined with a smart move from Clarky. You've got to find a way to win and that's what we did."
