“I’m very disappointed. We went from last week looking like contenders to this week looking a million miles off it.”
That was the take of Catalans coach Steve McNamara after the Dragons embarrassing 23-4 defeat against Hull KR last Thursday. That loss took their record to three losses, 0 wins after three rounds of Super League. As round four approaches, the French side anchor the bottom of the table.
Looking at each game in isolation, Catalans have had one solid performance this season and two horrible ones. Against Widnes away they were poor and off the pace, managing to score only two tries and conceding 40 points. They were better the following week at home against St Helens, but the match was somewhat affected by the sending off against Morgan Knowles. Would Saints have won more comfortably with 13 men on the field for 30-odd minutes? They still finished the game 21-12 victors.
The came the dismal offering at Craven Park. "The first half probably couldn’t have gone any worse if we had tried to be honest,” McNamara said post-game. “That was not acceptable and our errors in the first half were ridiculous. This is not going to determine the season as to whether we’re in the top eight or the middle eight. Every two points is vital and we weren’t good enough tonight and we didn’t deserve it."
So far the Dragons are on average giving away nine penalties a game. They are averaging 12 errors a performance, are scoring just 9.3 points and conceding 28 points a game. These are worrying stats so early in the campaign. Basic mistakes, soft defence and indiscipline is killing them.
Looking further back, under McNamara Catalans have shockingly only beaten two Super League sides in 16 attempts – and both of those victories were against Leigh, who went on to be relegated. Alarm bells should be ringing in Perpignan.
Some of the club’s most experienced campaigners – Greg Bird and Luke Walsh especially, have been their worst. Bird looks a shadow of the player that was an NRL star, World Cup winner and NSW stalwart only a few years ago, while Walsh never seems to have fully recovered from his broken leg he suffered while at St Helens. The decision to give Bird a five-year deal at the end of 2016 was strange.
Catalans have shelled out a fair amount of money in the off-season and always spend the full salary cap. On paper they still have a squad that should be in the top six. McNamara has made major changes in pre-season, appointing new assistants and support staff. The club needed a shake-up and he appears to be trying to do it.
But is he the right man to rebuild the club and take it forward? His past coaching record doesn’t really suggest that. Have the changes, and a cleanout of roster, gone far enough? Speculation on the club’s culture and partying off the field has flourished in recent times. A lack of professionalism, aligned with some poor recruitment, has proved costly in the past.
The visit of Wakefield to the Stade Gilbert Brutus on Saturday will be instructive. Catalans have always been stronger at home than on their road, but they meet an opponent who has undergone a remarkable transformation in the past two seasons. Run on the smell of an oily rag, Trinity show where hard work, good coaching, a strong culture and the right attitude can take you in rugby league.
The Dragons would do well to learn a few lessons from Wakefield if they are to save their season.
