Warrington Wolves 18-24 Catalans Dragons: Highlights, player ratings & talking points

Warrington Wolves took on Catalans Dragons at the Halliwell Jones Stadium tonight in front of a packed crowd.

In what was a tense and nervy affair, the Dragons ran out 6-0 leaders until Warrington hit back to level just after the midway point in the first-half.

Catalans struck just after the break to make it 12-6 before two late tries took the game away from the Wolves – though Warrington did threaten a very, very late comeback with two tries.

What a performance from the French side!

Highlights

Mickael Goudemand kicked through for himself to score in the second-half. Who said props can’t kick?

The foot race between Cesar Rouge and Josh Charnley when the former sprinted clear was a joy to behold.

Talking points

1. Warrington need to improve

At home in front of a packed Halliwell Jones, Warrington looked fatigued and sometimes lost in attack. That left the crowd often lacking in noise. And, with the Wolves only scoring one try, head coach Daryl Powell will have been desperately disappointed with his side’s showing.

2. How good is that Catalans defence?

Warrington had numerous sets on the Catalans line – especially towards the back end of the first-half – but the Dragons stood firm with some incredible hits and scrambling defence. Head coach Steve McNamara will have been really happy with that steel against the odds.

3. Two more cards

It’s been a touchy subject this season so far for rugby league fans and another two cards were dished out tonight by referee Liam Moore. Matt Whitley was sent to the sinbin after Matt Davis had been handed a yellow card for foul play. Both were fair dinkum under the new rules.

Player ratings

Warrington Wolves

1 Stefan Ratchford – 7
2 Josh Charnley – 7
3 Peter Mata’utia – 6
4 Toby King – 6
5 Matty Ashton – 6
6 Gareth Widdop – 6
7 George Williams – 6
15 Joe Bullock – 5
16 Danny Walker – 5
10 Mike Cooper – 5
11 Ben Currie – 6
12 Oliver Holmes – 6
13 Jack Hughes – 6
Substitutes
8 Joe Philbin – 6
9 Daryl Clark – 6
17 Matt Davis – 4
19 Robbie Mulhern – 7

Catalans Dragons