Daryl Clark scored a hat-trick as Castleford Tigers beat Widnes Vikings 40-20 to move two points adrift of St Helens at the top of the Super League tonight.
The Tigers started much the better of the sides and swiftly held an 18-point lead, with Luke Dorn, Oliver Holmes and Clark crossing over for the visitors.
Dennis Betts's side soon developed a foothold and even hinted at a comeback, courtesy of tries from Paddy Flynn and Danny Galea to reduce the deficit to six points.
However, Michael Shenton touched down one of his two tries of the contest on 36 minutes as Castleford boasted a 22-12 lead at the interval.
Patrick Ah Van crossed over on 51 minutes but a missed conversion from Danny Tickle saw the Vikings miss the chance to close the gap to four points.
The missed opportunity spurred on Daryl Powell's troops and Clark, either side of Shenton picking up his double, sealed his second and third tries of the night to open up an unassailable 24-point lead.
Chris Dean added a consolation with three minutes remaining to reduce the arrears, but it would not stop Castleford from closing in on St Helens at the summit.
Shane Callaghan
