Rangi Chase: 100% committed to Castleford Tigers

England half-back Rangi Chase remains "100% committed" to Castleford, despite rumours linking him to the NRL and rival Super League clubs.

He was a reported target for Wigan, and St George Illawara during the close season but agreed to stay at Wheldon Road for 2013.

"I'm 100% settled here," the 26-year-old told the BBC's Super League Show.

"I put my everything into Castleford Tigers, 100%, and my mind is focused on the job here."

He continued: "The guys who speculate need a new job because they always get it wrong. A lot of it happened last year, 90% of it was rumour and 90% of it was made up.

"It gets the fans unsettled and I need them to be on our side. It made me look like I wanted to leave when I didn't."

Last season was a tough one for the New Zealand-born playmaker, particularly as it followed a hugely impressive 2011 in which Castleford reached the Challenge Cup semi-finals and he was named Super League's Man of Steel.

He was banned for three games by the Rugby Football League for breaking Featherstone player Tangi Ropati's jaw in April before being suspended by the club for an off-the-field incident two months later as Castleford finished 13th in the table.

"2011 was a good year, Man of Steel took a while to sink in, we finished outside the (top) eight, but players thought otherwise and it was a proud moment," said Chase.

"We played good attacking style, I was involved, normally touched the ball three or four times a set, but I also learned my role instead of playing for myself and I was so confident.

"When the crowd was behind me it was an awesome feeling, I had never had that before and I loved it.

"2012 was bad as a team and for me wasn't so good, found it hard to adapt to structures, wasn't 100 into it, wasn't happy.

"You could see it in my performances, sometimes I would give up and didn't want to be there, get frustrated at myself and my teammates and spat my dummy out when I should have been the bigger man and got on with it."

Chase admitted that off the field he wasn't "doing the right things" last year and had found it hard to cope, but now knew what he needed "to fix".

He added: "It was a wakeup call, I could lose all I've dreamed of doing, I can't be doing that stuff because if I do I'll have nothing and it's made me grateful.

"I had my first baby boy last year and it's settled me down, made things sink in how lucky I am, got a kid, family, wife, and made me realise what's more important."