Catalans Edge Out Leigh To Go Back To Winning Ways
105 Comments
Leigh (6) 16
Tries: Niu 2, Senior Goals: Cook 2
Catalans (6) 22
Tries: Wilson, Staines, Dodd Goals: Sexton 5
Catalans Dragons went back to winning ways following back-to-back Super League defeats with a narrow victory at Leigh Leopards.
Tries from Harvey Wilson, Charlie Staines and Lewis Dodd breathed brand-new fire into the Dragons following frustrating beats by St Helens and Bradford Bulls in their previous two matches.
Tesi Niu scored 2 fantastic shots for Leigh, either side of winger Innes Senior's rating, however it showed to be fruitless for the hosts.
Leigh have now lost three Super League matches in a row and will require to see an enhancement in performances if they are to be in the play-off shake-up again this year.
The visitors' preparation for the match was struck when a mechanical fault on their airplane from Perpignan required them to make an emergency situation landing in Bordeaux, suggesting their journey to Greater Manchester took 16 hours to finish.
And they were dealt a further blow before kick-off when winger Tommy Makinson got an injury in the warm-up and had to be replaced in the starting line-up by Leo Darrelatour.
In the eighth minute, Leigh capitalized when outstanding hands from Lachlan Lam allowed stand-in full-back Gareth O'Brien to find Senior, who raced clear before establishing Niu to slide in for an exceptional group shot. Adam Cook added the extras fantastically from the touchline.
Lam was then adjudged to have obstructed off Nick Cotric's efforts to challenge for a high ball, and after Catalans were granted another set of 6 deep in Leigh territory, Wilson reviewed determinedly for his first Super League shot of the season under the sticks.
Catalans then went near taking the lead before the break however Darrelatour was pushed into touch when trying to score in the left corner.
Warrington hold off York to keep 100% start
Moments after the restart, Toby Sexton kicked Catalans into a minor advantage in front of the sticks after Liam Horne was discovered guilty of a ball take.
A stunning offload from Wigan Warriors loanee Kruise Leeming - among 11 new signings from last season in Catalans' matchday squad - allowed Sexton to charge forward before he found Staines, who finished an extraordinary move from close variety.
Catalans' two-score lead lasted less than 5 minutes though as O'Brien discovered Niu and he passed to winger Senior, who dived over in the left corner unopposed.
A no-look pass from Lam then went loose and was attacked upon by Darrelatour. He raced 80 lawns and wisely recycled the ball before Sexton discovered fellow half-back Dodd for an important 3rd try for the away side.
With 15 minutes left, Niu pulled off the moment of the match, picking the ball up deep in his own half, avoiding a difficulty from Cotric, before tricking Staines with exceptional footwork to dive over for a fantastic specific score.
In the dying moments, Leigh overdid the pressure in their quest to find a winning score, but outstanding defending from the Dragons dispatched their attempts, and the put the seal on the win through Sexton's 5th successful kick shortly before the hooter sounded.
'We lacked club's DNA' - response
"Frustrating again tonight. We had lots of opportunities again to win that video game but it just seemed like it was never truly in our favour the whole time.
"There were turning points like the intercept try. [If] we nail the skill there, we score the shot and we probably win the game - that was most likely the most discouraging part.
"It's [been] a hard night. There was a lot of effort but we did not have the game-sense. It's hard to watch sometimes and we're struggling to assemble 2 to 3 sets of attacks.
"We just had 19 [gamers] to pick from however that's not an excuse. We lacked the DNA of us as a club.
"We couldn't score points when we required them most and that's what we did actually well last year so we're a long method behind our best at the minute".
Catalans Dragons head coach Joel Tomkins informed Sky Sports:
"I'm truly, truly pleased with the boys. They had a little bit of a headache journey yesterday. The scramble, the desire and simply the work for each other, they never offered in, and I thought we got what we deserved tonight.
"We've got a couple of injuries at the minute, however what we have actually got is a group of lads who are willing to strive.
"We might not be the most skilled group, however they're going to be available in and they're going to work hard for each other. On the back of that, they'll get results.
"In the week, we had some truthful conversations, and it's going to be a long season for us if we turn out efficiencies like we did last week. If we end up efficiencies like we did this evening, then it'll be an actually pleasurable one."
[On his side's journey to Leigh:] "Obviously, its not perfect preparation however we never ever have best preparation - we average eight to 10 hours [of] travel [for away components]
"That becomes part of playing for Catalans. It's an unique group to be a part of - living in the south of France and playing in the English Super League.
"We do not whinge about it, we use it as a connection piece for the group. We might do some linking flights for a couple of more away games if we show up like that."
Leigh: O'Brien; Senior, Niu, Brand, Charnley; Cook, Lam; Trout, McNamara, Mulhern, Halton, Alick-Wiencke, Liu.
Interchanges: Hughes, Brown, Badrock, Horne.
Catalans: Staines; Darrelatour, Cotric, Faataape, Laulu-Togaga'e; Sexton, Dodd; Allen, Da Costa, Navarrete, Laguerre, Lipowicz, Wilson.
Interchanges: Satae, Condon, Leeming, Chan.