YORK City Knights head coach James Ford has brushed off speculation linking him to the vacant position at Castleford Tigers.

It was announced earlier this week that Castleford boss Darryl Powell would be moving to Warrington Wolves for the 2021 season.

Ex-Tigers outside back Ford has been rumoured to be succeeding Powell at The Jungle.

Ford has been in charge at York since 2015 and has transformed the club's fortunes after winning the League One title in 2018 and securing a third-placed finish in the Betfred Championship the following year.

And Ford insisted that his current full focus is on York.

He said: “I’ve got a job to do at York. I’ve got a good squad at York, great facilities, and I’m really committed to doing the best I possibly can for York.”

Knights chairman Jon Flatman has confirmed that he has had no approach from Cas, telling BBC Radio 5 Live: "The situation is that I've not had any contact from Castleford, as I hadn't previously had any contact from any Super League club that had lost their coach, so as until that point, we are all guns blazing for a big Challenge Cup game on Friday night."