Castleford Tigers 16, Bradford Bulls 44.

Somebody obviously forgot to tell Richard Moore it was only a friendly.

Within minutes of his first-half entry into the game, the giant prop had already flattened three players, even leaving Tiger Andy Lynch needing treatment.

But his utter determination and undeniable power was typical of a Bulls side who clearly were going to take this first hit-out of the season pretty seriously.

Moore's awesome power was matched by that of fellow props Stuart Fielden and Joe Vagana, who succeeded in punching holes in the Castleford defensive line with unnerving regularity.

Combine that with powerful running from the wider men as well as quick hands and imagination and you come up with a side who quickly established themselves last night as kings of the Jungle.

In fact it took them just 13 minutes to go 18 points ahead in a positive start to the Odsal homecoming season that not even the most optimistic fan could have predicted.

A clever slanting run after just four minutes from Robbie Paul to take the ball from new player coach Jimmy Lowes gave Leon Pryce a run-in from close range.

The impressive Lee Radford was the next to cross the line, again the supply coming from Lowes at the end of a move that had featured six off-loads as the ball was switched from one side of the field to the other. Paul himself then went over from a Radford pass.

Needless to say the ice-cool baby-faced assassin Paul Deacon was on hand to convert each of the scores on a night where he continued last season's impressive form with six successful kicks.

Pryce was excelling in the full back role while skipper Paul was playing with a new-found exuberance.

The Tigers were awarded a penalty try when they threatened the Bulls line seriously for the first time in the 35th minute but the final score of the half went to the visitors.

Paul twisted, swivelled, danced and turned his way through some desperate tackles before pirouetting over the line in a mesmerising display of balance and control.

Although the collective feet were taken off the gas a little in the second-half, Scott Naylor sealed the game with a 25-metre touchline dash that put the game beyond doubt at 28-6.

Castleford new boy Damian Gibson ran through a gap in the right centre position to pull one back before Danny Gartner finished off a Fielden pass from an incisive Lowes kick over the top.

In the 55th minute Karl Pratt capped his Bulls debut by diffusing a Tigers bomb without a hint of fear and thus temporarily putting to bed the ghost of his nightmare First Test against the Kiwis last season.

Youngster Stuart Reardon, who toured Tonga and Fiji with England A in the winter, grabbed the Bulls' seventh before Radford ran in his second after a Vagana off-load.

Gibson bagged a second as the visitor's failed to respond to a chip in time to round off the scoring.

Friendly or not, it was a mightily impressive start.