I have been biting my lip for a few weeks now but here goes.
as a fullback dorn's one on one defence is shocking, his kick returns average at best and his positional play poor .(or is it just that opposition kickers kick away from him unlike ours).Mr Tansey must have been one naughty chappie not to get a game.
dixon whilst being a wholehearted player is making too many errors and is very one dimensional e.g his kick offs.
sneyd doesn't turn up for big matches which is probably why he has signed for hull and we certainly didn't miss his goalkicking last night.
finn was a baffling signing who for most of the season confounded his critics. recently his out of hand kicking has been atrocious he found wellens with such accuracy. I thought it was just good positional play from wellens until I realised he didn't have to move. finns one on one tackling is poor so much so other teams aim for him and he usually obliges.
the forwards as a whole seem to have gone down a notch or two. tiredness ? perhaps.
the most worrying aspect though is that in the last 200 mins of game time we have only scored 2 tries this from a team who were the 2nd highest scorers in regular season. we had been averaging over 30 points per game.
having said all that I have thoroughly enjoyed this season just a shame about the last few games.

Agree with all of that.

its ok you have got luke gale next season.ha ha what a bummer.

Given the recent performances by our current half backs Gale will be an improvement. It says something when the Saints half back combo (back rower / centre) had a better kicking game than Ellis & Finn last nt

Our worst form of the season had come at the wrong time of the season. We possibly have been the most entertaining side over the course of the season but recent displays have been lacking. This is where tiredness and recent lack of BIG game experience had come to play IMO. Also we need to keep in mind at the start of the season there has been unity and now the squad knows that this team will be losing some BIG stars for next season which almost definitely will have an effect. Hopefully we can have a decent game against the wolves next week and end the season on a high but you can't take away from the lads what's been achieved this year, most definitely the over achievers by a country mile.

Where is Mariano? Is he injured?

It looked like you needed his size and strength in the second row or at least coming off the bench against that monster St.Helens pack. He could have also slipped into centre for Webster when he got injured. He did well for Trinity covering centre as he has some pace for a big bloke at 6ft 2 and 17 stone.

Yes injured.

Your team needs some big games behind you to know how to win them, if that makes sense. It was the same for us in 2010 & 2011, winning CC games is different to winning in the play offs & making it to O/T. Leeds have been masters at it for seasons.

You have the home advantage on Thursday but our big game experience levels that up.

You over achieved and have been found out

From an outsider's POV I don't think anything has gone wrong. You've achieved the highest position in the league for many years, you've been to a Challenge Cup final and you're in the play offs. That's called progress. There is still one trophy to go for but if that doesn't come off then the club has still made massive progress. The key is to build on that progress next year.

Widnes are another team that has made progress, but theirs hasn't been quite so eye catching as that of Cas as it has been incremental over three years rather than a sudden leap in one.

Although Cas fans are bound to be disappointed given the tremendous season until the CC final and given what attractive rugby the team has played this year, there really is no need to be disheartened.

I appreciate your point and thanks, but seeing a team in recent weeks playing nothing like they have been all season is disheartening, particularly when it's come to the business end of the season.

Another outsider's POV here, so feel free to ignore. But the way your season seems to be going reminds me of how Wigan's went in 2011 and 2012. In 2011 we had an incredibly tough run to Wembley and still managed to stay pretty consistent in the league, finishing 2nd. By the time the POs came round we were shot and the season petered out in a bit of a disappointment. In 2012 it was a similar story, however a very consistent league campaign was blighted by two poor semi-final performances, which meant we ended up with the LLS and nothing else.

You may still turn it round, but as others have mentioned your lack of experience in winning 'big' games may ultimately be your downfall. You play your best rugby at home to Warrington and you've every chance of winning, and you've already been to the DW and beat us in the CCQF.

I think Cas have had a brilliant season, one the presumably way above most of your fans expectations at the start of the season. You were one game away from the LLS and runners up in the CC and you still in the mix for the GF. What ever happens in the remainder of this season you have put a marker down to build on.

I think this is a bit harsh. This is a team that was expected to be scrapping it out around the relegation places this season and has undoubtedly been hitting above its weight to be 4th in the table and get to the CC final. Sure there are weaknesses - Dorn, Dixon, Sneyd, Finn have never been world beaters and have never played at this level, so the criticism is valid but a little pointless given they are in a squad designed to survive - not challenge for the top honours as it has done.

It's clear that the team is shattered from playing more games than usual and more high intensity games than usual. Being hammered by a Saints team that didn't have a particularly long cup run and has players who have played at the highest level is hardly surprising when they're both fresher and designed to play at this level.

Sure it's a bit disappointing but you have to be realistic - this isn't a team that is full of stars or players who have playoff experience. We still have a chance to turn it around but if we don't, it's still been an incredible year and I just hope we can build on it next year.

Dare I says that all season people have been waiting for Castleford to implode (but were riding along with them whilst the going was good). Maybe they just imploded ?