Diehard Dragons shock Saints

Dureau's touchline conversion seals incredible comeback win

Last updated: 24th February 2012   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Diehard Dragons shock Saints

Vincent Duport puts Saints under pressure

Related links

Teams

Also see

Catalan Dragons claimed a sensational last-gasp victory over St Helens to go top of the Super League for the first time in their seven-year history.

The French side trailed 26-8 midway through the second half but roared back to win 34-32, scoring the match-winning try through Daryl Millard with the last play of the game.

Saints made a fast start with some sparkling rugby and led 20-8 at half-time, with no hint of the dramatic turnaround to come.

It took them just three minutes to open the scoring, with winger Jamie Foster gathering the ball from Lee Gaskell's grubber kick to touch down.

The Dragons levelled when prop Remi Casty shrugged off the attempted challenge of Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook to touch down, but Saints were always the more inventive side in the first half.

Lomax jinked his way through the Catalan defence to get prop Anthony Laffranchi over on 15 minutes and Gary Wheeler took Paul Wellens' pass to beat three defenders to score a third try.

Foster, whose three missed kicks ultimately cost his side both points in last Sunday's 36-36 draw against Hull KR, converted all three tries and also kicked a first-half penalty but Scott Dureau kept the visitors in touch with a penalty on the stroke of half-time.

Dominance

Saints quickly confirmed their dominance four minutes into the second half when 20-year-old right winger Tommy Makinson scooped up a pass from Michael Shenton by his ankles to cross for his side's fourth try.

Foster's fifth goal made it 26-8 but the French side were far from finished and set up a tense finish with a scoring burst of three tries in eight minutes.

James Roby and Makinson combined with a terrific last-ditch tackle to deny Millard but, when the Dragons moved the ball the full width of the pitch, Steve Menzies got winger Damien Blanch over on 57 minutes.

That was enough to inject renewed confidence in the Catalans side as they struck with two more tries in as many minutes.

Foster dropped Millard's kick to gift centre Vincent Duport a touchdown and Dureau finished off a break by Blanch to cut the gap to just four points.

Wheeler then looked to have come to Saints' rescue, intercepting Dureau's pass to score his second try.

However, former Saint Leon Pryce sent second rower Setaimata Sa over for a fifth Catalan try and, with the last move of the match, the visitors somehow kept the ball alive, swinging it the full width of the pitch for Millard to touch down at the corner.

That levelled the scores and, after a lengthy delay while video referee Steve Ganson scrutinised the movement, Dureau kept his nerve to land the winning goal from the touchline.

Sky Bet Odds:

Click Here for Your Free Bet

Comments (2)

  • Page 1 of 1
  • 1

Uzair Majid says...

Catalan showed once again they are a very tough side when you are thinking when you're about 20 nil up at half time against them you think we've won this no you haven't because it's all about complacency they don't give up without a fight and I thought to be honest the referee's performance wasn't the best but I thought Saints made far too many errors and conceded far too much penalties in the second half so did Catalan but they made sure that they can break Saints Defence from the game Saints were brilliant in the first half and Catalan were the better team in the Second Half. Both Sides were very good but Catalan came out on the right side of the scoreboard let this be a lesson for Saints though if I was Trent Robinson I would congratulate everyone in the team they didn't stick their heads down they kept going something Saints have to work on if they have any chance going to Old Trafford this year

Posted 09:34 25th February 2012

Lee Jordan says...

I'm a Leeds fan. But James Child is a joke, he consistently misses key decisions and decides against some crucial ones. Although the effort from Catalans was spot on and deserved to win eventually, Child won the game for the Saints with several awful decisions pointed out by Sky.

Posted 02:29 25th February 2012
  • Page 1 of 1
  • 1