Dragons close on third

Catalans Dragons seem certain to finish third in Super League after a 22-20 win at Huddersfield.

Adam Mogg scored two tries as the French club snapped their run of three games without a win with a thrilling fightback at a packed Galpharm Stadium.

Huddersfield had given their supporters free admission to the match and at half time announced a dramatic cut in season ticket prices for the 2009 campaign.

Those fans who had been persuaded to take up the offer of free seats will have been delighted by the Giants' first-half performance as tries from David Hodgson and Martin Aspinwall helped them into a 12-10 interval lead.

However, Mogg's second-half double enabled the French side to come storming through to take the two points.

Les Catalans had taken only one point from their previous three matches while Huddersfield had been in impressive form with three successive victories.

For long periods of the match, they looked set to secure a fourth successive win. They took the lead after only six minutes when right winger Martin Aspinwall timed his run to perfection to touch down a grubber kick from centre Kevin Brown.

The Giants thought they had scored again when Dragons winger Justin Murphy fumbled Luke Robinson's stabbed kick - but slow-motion replays showed a knock-on by centre Paul Whatuira.

Catalans were slow starters but drew level on 19 minutes when Murphy made amends for his earlier blunder by taking Mogg's long pass to squeeze over at the corner.

But Hodgson then swooped on full-back Clint Greenshields' intended pass for Murphy and showed a clean pair of heels on a 90-metre sprint to the line.

Chris Thorman missed his second conversion attempt but slotted over a penalty to make it 10-4, only for the visitors to draw level a minute later.

Steady drizzle caused a series of handling errors, and it was from a skewed pass by Huddersfield second-rower Andy Raleigh that Dragons hooker Aaron Gorrell went in for his side's second try.

Thomas Bosc kicked his first goal to tie the scores. But Thorman edged his side ahead with a second penalty three minutes before the break - and then added a third on 52 minutes to make it 14-10.

The match became a midfield war of attrition in the increasingly difficult conditions. But the Catalans demonstrated their ability to score from long range when Greenshields broke out of defence and sent the supporting Mogg over for his side's third try.

Bosc's conversion attempt rebounded off a post, leaving the scores locked a 14-14. But Huddersfield regained the lead on the hour when Thorman's wayward pass wrongfooted the visitors defence, and substitute Danny Kirmond jinked his way over for a try.

However, the scores were level for a fourth time on 65 minutes when the ever-dangerous Mogg jinked his way over for his second try - to which Bosc added

the conversion.

Robinson's drop-goal attempt was wide, before Bosc put the Dragons in front for the first time on 70 minutes with a penalty after Stuart Jones had been pulled up for a foul tackle on John Wilson.