It’s important to add some context to our 2018 review, I
suppose.
Two competitions with markedly different results and performances
that shaped the coach’s destiny.
If we take the league first and in isolation, its safe to say
it was a disappointing campaign. There were too many heavy defeats early in the
season which meant that the sole objective was getting into the super 8s and
avoiding the chance of another million-pound game appearance.
As it happened, they just made it into those 8s and that was
down to some really good fortune with Leeds flopping dramatically.
Better to be a lucky coach than a good one?
The cup however is a different story and despite being the giants
to be killed in the early rounds, momentum was on our side in the latter stages
of the competition.
The season started with four straight losses and the coach
bemoaning his team’s lack of a pre-season after the World Cup.
After getting hammered on the opening weekend at Widnes (who
went on to get relegated) we backed that up with a home defeat to St Helens and
another smacking, this time at Hull KR.
There was late heartbreak at home to Wakefield before the quick
return match against KR saw us nudge home by 2 points.
Whilst you could argue the home matches were close, the away
performances and results were poor and despite hoping the first win would kick
us on, it preceded the worst set of results of the whole campaign.
A nilling at home to Warrington by over 30 points was the
final straw for many fans and saw us tweeting #mcnamaraout . We didn’t take the
chance to make amends at Hull FC where another battering meant we had one win
in the league as we got to Easter. For a club supposedly on a path to winning
stuff, this was wholly unacceptable.
You can take losing games, its part of sport after all. But
there was no resilience, no fight and very little idea from the sidelines of how
to put it right.
After another hammering on Good Friday, there was talk that a
new coach would in place before the Easter Monday match with Huddersfield. But
it all went a bit quiet, despite rumours of who it might be and McNamara, it
seemed, had one last chance.
The Giants were in a similar predicament to the Dragons and just
about scraped a side together to get to Perpignan. It was a crucial game between
the leagues basement clubs and Dragons put in a strong and positive performance,
coming home 27-6.
Performance wise, they backed it up the following week against
Wigan, but despite having a large lead, managed to lose it late on.
A trip to Castleford looked like it might seal McNamara’s
fate, especially after a 41-0 defeat, but it was at this point that the club’s
owner stepped in with a genuine vote of confidence.
The fans were repaid with a scratchy performance at League 1
York in their opening Challenge Cup appearance, but a good second half saw them
into the hat for the next round.
League form was better but inconsistent after that with a
home win over Hull by a single point followed up with defeat at St Helens. The spirit
seemed better though and with Tony Gigot back from his ban and Josh Drinkwater
hitting the ground running, the side was beginning to take a better shape.
A favourable cup draw saw another League 1 side in Whitehaven
beaten by 50 points before a run of three straight wins in the Super League
over Salford (at Magic Weekend), Leeds and Widnes.
In among that was a gritty Challenge Cup win at Huddersfield
before a late try saw the same opposition bring that winning run to a halt.
It looked a definitive
blow. Since that Easter meeting, both the Giants and Dragons had been steadily
eating away at their league deficit and getting back among those looking to
stay out of the bottom four.
There looked to be only a single spot in the 8 left for
either of the clubs and Huddersfield’s late show seemed to give them pole position.
Dragons needed either Wakefield or reigning champions Leeds
to slip up during the run in.
Next up was Leeds away and a ground that usually sees the
Dragons beaten quite convincingly. But this day was different and a controlled
a positive performance saw a narrow 25-28 victory and the points went home to
France.
A heavy win over Castleford at home was followed by a win in
Wakefield and suddenly Catalans had beaten their two rivals for the top 8 to drag
them into sight.
This new-found spirit saw the Dragons suddenly look
competitive on the road and an inspired showing saw them get a crucial point in
a draw at Warrington.
A big win against Salford saw us into the top 8 and we would
stay there despite losing the following week at Wigan.
It was Leeds who were in the bottom 4 and both Huddersfield
and Catalans survived, an outcome back at Easter you would have been mad to suggest.
The boost of not being involved in any sort of relegation
play off lifted Dragons who produced their best performance of the season when
despatching the hitherto invincible looking St Helens in the Challenge Cup semi
final in Bolton. The Saints were simply blown away in the first half by a team
that looked stronger, fitter and keener. The desire Dragons showed was amazing
and they rightly progressed.
With a final against Warrington at Wembley to look forward
to, Steve McNamara took the opportunity to rest several key players. The two matches
between the semi and the final saw the Dragons well beaten at the Wolves and at
home to Wigan.
The 25th August will go down in sporting history
as the first time a French club has won an English domestic cup competition.
Or words to that effect.
The fact there were clubs from all over the UK and a North
American entrant makes the Challenge Cup a unique prospect.
The final was a nervy affair and it didn’t take long for the
touch paper to be lit when Lewis Tierney went over from close range to open the
scoring.
Whilst Warrington went close on several occasions and kept
the game down to a single score, the Dracs were inspired by Tony Gigot and took
a deserving win.
It was a brilliant occasion and one that the coach and
players rightly milked after the stick they had taken earlier in the season.
Catalans had arrived as a rugby club and this will hopefully
be seen in years to come as the sort of shot in the arm the game needed.
We can but dream!
Three straight league defeats followed the cup win, but by
now, everyone was in party mode.
For the record they were away to Castleford, at home to St Helens
and away to Wakefield.
The season finished positively with wins at Hull and at to Huddersfield
and you could consider the top 8 final position an improvement after the club had
faced Leigh in the Million Pound game the season before.
In summing up there were a couple of key personnel who
ensure success this season. The signing of Josh Drinkwater and the return of
Tony Gigot meant some of the flair we had been missing came back. Remy Casty
led from the front and I am even happy to heap some praise on the coach.
He said they would start slowly (and he was certainly right
about that), but he also believed his players would come good and they did.
It was a memorable season, mainly for winning the cup, something
that might never be repeated but certainly won’t be forgotten.
Let’s see what 2019 brings.