YORK City Knights have taken Castleford protégé Jordan Thompson on loan – while Scott Woods is to go out of Huntington Stadium on similar terms.

Thompson, 19, who was dual-registered with York last year but did not play for the club as he instead made 15 Super League appearances for the Tigers, is rated by Knights boss Dave Woods as one of the top young talents in British rugby league, likening him to current England centre Michael Shenton.

He arrives initially for a month, becoming the third Cas starlet to make a temporary switch to York, after packmen John Davies and Nathan Massey.

Thompson will go straight into the squad for Sunday’s final Northern Rail Cup group match, at home to Keighley.

Fit-again Rhys Clarke, the back-rower who signed in the off-season from Gateshead, and full-back Sam Lynch, Thompson’s former Cas academy team-mate, are also in contention to make debuts this weekend.

Meanwhile, scrum-half Woods, the 20-year-old son of the Knights’ head coach, will join Championship One club Gateshead on loan, initially for a month, and will likewise play on Sunday, in their game against Swinton, should the paperwork be completed in time.

Woods senior, the former boss at both Cas and Gateshead, said of Thompson: “He will be a star of the future in the English game.

“He’s a good footballer. He’s got a lot of pace and strength. He reminds me a lot of Michael Shenton when I coached him at Cas.”

Thompson, who scored three tries in two games as he helped England Academy to a notable test series win over the famed Australian Schoolboys before Christmas, has not figured in the Tigers’ opening Super League matches this season.

He will remain in full-time training with Cas’s first team squad and will link up with the Knights for match-day preparation.

Tigers boss Terry Matterson said: “We feel Jordan needs to play at Championship level to continue to develop his game and with Nathan and John at York it was a great opportunity for him to gain some first-team experience.”

Gaining experience is also the reason why Woods junior is going on loan to his former club Gateshead, where the Woods’ family still have a home. He will train with the Knights on Tuesdays and with Thunder later in the week.

Woods senior said: “It will be good for him. He’s still a year or so away from playing at Championship level but he’s improving and training well.

“When we were discussing team selection ahead of Sunday’s game at London Skolars (with Jonny Presley ruled out), Chris Thorman said he wanted Scott in the halves with him. To get an endorsement like that is great.

“He knows and we know he’s not ready for the Championship yet, but we’re looking at developing players and, in Scott’s case, this will be the next stage for that.”