Even though we are set to see a mouth watering clash between Wigan Warriors and Warrington Wolves, a pivotal game between Leeds Rhinos and Hull KR as well as an intriguing battle between Huddersfield Giants and Wakefield Trinity, it is unlikely any of the games tonight will top what we saw last night.
Jon Wells called it “the game of the season so far” the two coaches in Paul Wellens and Steve McNamara likened it to a semi-final whilst Bill Arthur described it as a Grand Final dress rehearsal.
It was a huge game in the context of the league as Super League and World Champions St Helens arrived in third behind Catalans Dragons in first with Leigh Leopards sandwiched between the two clubs.
Two teams who met in the 2021 Grand Final, there is respect there but also a level of disdain which made for a fiery affair.
It became clear that this game would be one of the matches of the season early on when the first 10 minutes ticked by without an error. It was blow for blow but the Dragons had the better of the ruck and that translated to a two point lead via a Adam Keighran penalty.
The Dragons would then add to their lead when the Saints pressed and kicked crossfield with Keighran claiming the kick and setting Tom Johnstone away to run the length of the field to make it 8-0.
Then the controversial spell of the game as Saints received a number of penalties as they turned the screw against the Dragons and eventually Mark Percival was well placed to claim a lovely grubber kick to make it 8-6.
The Dragons could have re-established their lead with another try as they broke clear but Sam Tomkins was left frustrated when an offload was given as forward.
However, the Dragons would get themselves further ahead in the second half when a lovely set play put Matt Ikuvalu in at the corner as he saw off some cover defence to go in at the corner.
It would then be a case of scrambling defence from the Dragons as they tried to hold out. Will Hopoate went close but in the end it was Lewis Dodd who went over at the end of a lovely passing move to set up a grand stand finish.
In the end though Catalans clung on to a brilliant win.
It was a great game but a difficult one for the officials as you would expect in a fiery affair.
There were some big 50/50 calls and both sides will feel aggrieved by some.
At halftime, Jon Wilkin claimed that Steve McNamara would be “unhappy with the officials” after he felt Saints got “lucky” with some “tough calls” against the Dragons whilst Jenna Brooks revealed that McNamara was “angry” at the break and spoke to the match commissioner.
At the end though it was St Helens unhappy with Bill Arthur claiming Saints fans were booing off the officials at the end.
They likely felt like they should have had a penalty at the end for a strip from Romain Navarrete.
As with Salford Red Devils’ defeat to Leeds last week, there has sadly been a heavy focus on the officials on social media.
Now though former official Ian Smith has hit out at the fans who blame the official saying on social media:
“It’s far easier to blame the ref rather than either blame your own players for the loss or praise the opposition for their better play. Bizarre in my honest opinion.”
