Catalans Dragons coach outlines season plan after Steve McNamara sacking

Catalans Dragons interim coach Joel Tomkins has said that his players have had some honest conversations as a group this week, following their heavy defeat to Wigan Warriors last weekend.

Although the club have yet to officially announce that Steve McNamara has left the club, Tomkins is going into his second game in charge after coaching his first match against his former side last Sunday.

The Dragons have arguably been the biggest under-performers in Super League this year, with fans and pundits alike originally agreeing that they could be the dark horses in 2025.

However, with a new coach at the helm now, the players seem to be more together than ever, according to their interim boss.

Catalans face Hull FC at home on Saturday, and Tomkins believes that they could be turning a corner as a squad.

Speaking to the press during the week, he said: “We did a longer review (after the Wigan game), we had some honest conversations about where we are as a group and where we want to be by the end of the season.

“We’ve come up with a plan as to how we will build each week and gain confidence. We’ve trained well this week and we’re looking forward to a challenge on Saturday night against Hull FC.

“It’s been a good week up to now, and hopefully, we’ll go on Saturday and get a good result.

“Then we go into the Challenge Cup week with some confidence and get a good week’s training in for the rest of the season.”

Catalans Dragons boss sees the positives despite 48-0 loss to Wigan Warriors

The Catalans Dragons boss admitted that whilst being on the wrong end of a 48-0 scoreline isn’t a great feeling, he saw some positives from the performance.

He added: “Confidence was low after the Wigan game, which is natural. 48 points (to concede) is a lot, but there were some positives in the game, especially in the first half.

“I thought 20-0 at half-time doesn’t look good, but when you break the game down, we did some good things in the first half.

“It was just individual errors, so we’re trying to take the positives from the game. Obviously, there are a lot of things we need to improve on, but the boys have been honest this week.

“They’ve looked into each other’s eyes and been honest with each other.”

The good news for Catalans Dragons fans is that both Tommy Makinson and Nick Cotric are fully fit and should feature, and captain Benjamin Garcia and Arthur Romano are included in their 21-man squad and are possibilities to make the matchday team.

The Dragons will be hoping for another healthy home crowd against the Black and Whites on Saturday too, with the game also being available for free on Super League+.