Castleford Tigers have been plunged into fresh turmoil after reports emerged that head coach Ryan Carr has been stood down ahead of this week’s Super League clash with Hull KR.
Love Rugby League claims Carr has been suspended pending an investigation, although there is no suggestion of any wrongdoing at this stage.
The Australian took his scheduled pre-match press conference on Tuesday before the news broke just hours later, throwing the Tigers into fresh uncertainty ahead of the weekend.
Castleford currently sit 11th in the Super League table, having won seven of their 21 matches this season.
It has been a campaign of dramatic highs and crushing lows for the OneBore Stadium outfit. Memorable victories over Wigan Warriors in April and St Helens in May have been overshadowed by several heavy defeats.
Among those were a 50-10 loss to Hull FC, a humiliating 72-6 hammering at Warrington Wolves and three comprehensive derby defeats against Wakefield Trinity.
Speaking before the reports surrounding Carr emerged, Hull KR boss Willie Peters insisted his side would not underestimate the Tigers as they continue their play-off charge, with every match now taking on added importance.
That message is likely to remain unchanged for the Robins despite the uncertainty surrounding their opponents: focus on what they can control.
“We respect what they’re capable of, certainly at home,” Peters said.
“We don’t know what Castleford team is going to turn up this week, but I do know we respect them and we need to play well to beat them.
“But like always, we focus on ourselves first and that’s the most important thing for where we’re at in the season and where we want to get to – the most important thing is what we can control and our preparation.
“We naturally did our preview, where we think we can exploit them and where their strengths are. Like every week, we’re pretty consistent with how we preview teams and a lot of it comes back to what we can control.”