Castleford player looks
for promotion to join band of brothers

Andy Henderson is hoping to make the engage Super League a family affair on Sunday when he leads Castleford into battle with Whitehaven in the LHF National League One Grand Final at Widnes.

Victory for the Tigers in front of a record 13,000 crowd at the Halton Stadium will take them back into the top flight at the first attempt and enable their captain to join his two younger brothers in Super League.

Former Sydney Roosters and Parramatta hooker Ian Henderson, 22, has helped Bradford reach next Saturday?s Grand Final, while ex-Newcastle Knights centre or second rower Kevin, 24, has landed a new contract for next season with Wakefield after starting the year with Leigh.

Andy, 26, who was with Wests Tigers last year, was on the point of joining Super League two years ago when his proposed move to Widnes collapsed but victory over the Cumbrians on Sunday would enable him to realise his dream.

?I have watched Kevin and Ian this year and it would be great to join them in Super League,? he said. ?The possibility of it happening is very high. I hope so any way.

?Last year we all played against each other back in Australia, which was a buzz, and hopefully we will carry that on into Super League.

?We have never played together and that?s why I was hoping Ian and Kevin were going to play with Scotland at the end of the season. But Kevin has decided to go home and Ian is the same. He wants to take the rest and prepare well for Super League next year.

?I have committed to Scotland over the last couple of years and promised that I would be there this year, so I will stick to that.?

The Hendersons were born in Torquay, sons of a Scottish father, and emigrated to Sydney 18 years ago but have all discovered the travel bug.

Their sister, who trains horses, is based in Singapore, while Andy was the first to return to the country of his birth in 2002 and spent two seasons with Barrow.

?I came back over to play with Scotland at the end of last year and then I got a deal from Castleford,? he said.

?It?s just coincidence that Ian and Kevin are here as well but I am glad it has happened because it has made my year more enjoyable. Ian is living with me now in Castleford and Kevin is living at Normanton, literally 10 minutes down the road.

?We are all pretty close together and it?s great that we are able to catch up with each other on a regular basis and spend a lot of time together.?

If Castleford beat Whitehaven on Sunday, Ian will become a fierce rival once more and that could mean him looking for new accommodation.

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Thanks to www.superleague.co.uk for this article.