I'd rather we got Cas away to be honest, No enthusiasm coming from the Cherry & White this season, only get the bit between the teeth when wearing purple! (not entirely accurate as we have played away in the home kit, but you get my drift)

Great draw
Cas will give us a game & no one can whine about wigan getting an easy draw!
It will be interesting to see how we compete when up against a form team with something to play for.

mmm.... re-seeding the pitch at DW...last game for Latics could be 8th or 9th May.....that only leaves 4 weeks before cup game against Cas....

let's hope they pay the extra and use "Canada Green" sprouts and covers in 14 days

I wouldn't get drawn into believing this propaganda that Wigan are where they are this season because they've never met anyone who's any good. Both the Saints and Warrington games saw us overcome determined opposition. We've been lucky in the Cup so far, but that's the way it goes. When you aren't lucky, no-one gives you credit for it. In 2011, our Wembley trail saw us defeat Bradford (when that meant a lot more than it would now), Saints, Warrington and Leeds. And yet no-one outside Wigan shouted about what an achievement it was.

Cas will be a real hard challenge, but no-one ever wins the Cup without meeting at least one major opponent on the way.

I we were playing them next week I'd expect a cracker of a game. In two months time, who knows? Will the Cas bubble have burst or will they be serious title contenders? One team could have major injury problems. 2 months is far to far away to get excited over the tie yet.

They remind me of us in the first season under Madge and everybody expected our bubble to burst. They have the right attitude and culture it seems and i applaud them for it. Not to long ago i wrote them off and said they should merge with wakefield, i was most defiantly wrong. Its good to see another british coach doing well and i believe Shaun Wane is right that all coaches should have a 5-10 years learning out side of super league or head coach spot.

We will never merge with Wakefield as there is no reason to ever.

There was more than one reason to;
Both was struggling
Both was losing money
Both had fading attendance's
both need a new stadium

But Castleford seem to be turning it around.

I remember their win in 86. We had a great team that year, but they did a job on us.
Cas are a great club, with a wonderful tradition, and a great coach. We won't take them lightly, though, especially after they have beaten us on the last 2 occasions we have played them.
Can't wait.

When did we last lose a home game in the Cup?

Over the years, Cas have been a bit of a bogey team for us.

Ironically the last time we lost at home in the challenge cup was 1985/86 against castleford and the last time we lost at home before that was against.... Yep you guessed it castleford!

Great omens then!

Crazy that we haven't lost at home in the Challenge Cup for over 28 years.

Hopefully we will fix that for you in June

You forgot to add the some of the original reasons behind the merger proposals which were to do with too many teams in too small an area and the way that affects potential for growth. The population of Castleford is 38,600 with Featherstone and Wakey next door with Leeds hardly a long way off.

The fact Cas are currently enjoying on-field success doesn't make the off field issues go away and good start to one SL season doesn't mean much. It meeds to be maintained long term over several seasons. Hudds took years to be considered part of the top flight.

That doesn't mean I think they should have or should merge because I just don't think mergers would ever work for the supporters. Just look at Cumbria. The idea of a Whitehaven / Workington merger is mentioned almost annually and no one is up for it.

Under the upcoming reorganisation and new Sky deal [igiven the salary cap won't be going up[/i both Cas and Wakey will be able to survive as SL clubs despite a smaller support base to draw on as their entire wage bill up to the salary cap will be paid whether they can generate the revenue to cover it or not.

However the sport has to decide if a salary cap of £1.825m is enough to maintain RL as a viable professional sport in light of the competition from the NRL and RU but also is a wage limit of £1.825m going to allow the players to remain full time and of an adequate standard. It has effectively been stuck at this level or lower for years so players wages have been eroded by inflation. It well be stuck at the level for the duration of the new Sky deal as well so this will only get worse.

If the sport ever sees sense and decides to up the salary cap then unless the TV revenue covers it (which thanks to the inept RFL it can't for several years) clubs like Cas, Wakey and others such as Fev would struggle to compete once again because they just can't generate the income required.

Mind you I can't see that happening anytime soon. They effectively have a veto on increasing the salary cap and have IIRC voted against things Koukash's marquee player idea.