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The Jungle: not up to scratch

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Teams

• Castleford Tigers

Castleford were the latest Super League side to come under the Boots 'n' All licensing spotlight.

With clubs being asked to put their bids in for a permit to take part in the competition from 2009, every week Angela Powers will be out and about seeing how the candidates meet the necessary criteria.

This week she took a look at Super League's newcomers, who are hoping to make it a permanent stay in the top flight after earning promotion last season.

And the news is mixed for Tigers fans. On current reckoning they would be awarded just four points and would obtain a 'C' licence.

However, the club have plans for a new 15,000-capacity stadium which could be ready for the season after next. With that in place, the club would be in a good position to see off the competition from the other 'C' licensees.

At present, The Jungle is an old-style stadium with wooden seats that are open to the elements and it does not meet the premier competition standard.

With a capacity of 11,750 it falls just short of the 12,000 required and the club's average gate is not big enough to meet the RFL's requirements. However, they do pick up a point for operating at 40 per cent capacity.

The club do not have an annual turnover in excess of £4million, their relegation counts against them and they do not pick up any points for their location because they are so close to clubs like Leeds, Bradford and Featherstone.

But they are likely to earn points for junior development, for being solvent and for having no major breaches of the salary cap.

Castleford Tigers chief executive Richard Wright said: "I think the tradition and history of the club in itself should determine that we should be given a licence.

"But also a lot of hard work has gone into building and developing the club.

"We've had a couple of tough years with promotion and relegation, but we've put a lot of things into place that put the club on a very good footing to move forward and enter a new Super League era."