The Dragons will be kicking off against a domestic league select side on 4th Feb.
Friday, 23 December 2022
Friday, 2 December 2022
Ladies kick off this weekend
Catalans Dragons women team will face Toulouse on Sunday, December 4, kick-off at 3pm CET at the St Estève Stadium.
After their opening loss at Lescure last October and the postponement of their Round 2, they will do everything to secure their first points of the season in front of their fans.
Friday, 25 November 2022
Wednesday, 23 November 2022
Friday, 11 November 2022
Thursday, 3 November 2022
2023 Fixtures
Catalans 2023 fixtures have been released today by the Superleague.
All are subject to change and tv schedules.
Wednesday, 2 November 2022
Can you help a touch club with Dragons connections?
NEW KIT UPDATE
BY JAMES WARRENER
Yaks 2023 match shirts are landing soon
The new shirts for next season have been embroidered and delivered ahead of the 2023 summer touch league (and some prestige friendlies that are on the pad).
Shirts are plain navy with the crest added, we have 6 starter shirts with 3 subs in mixed sizes.
The next stage is getting them numbered and there might be some support in ironing them on that will be needed !
If anyone knows of a company or organisation that might be interested in sponsoring the shirts this can be done at cost price which is £100.
Contact James for information and a copy of the sponsor proposal.
Tuesday, 1 November 2022
Warrington hoover up our former players
Great pun on their shirt sponsor eh?
Sam Kasiano, Gil Dudson and (potentially) Josh Drinkwater are looking to trade the south of France for the north west of England this off season.
The trio will be looking to help Warrington improve on their next to bottom league finish in 2022.
At the moment our in door has creaked open with Tom Johnstone (Wakefield), Manu M'au (Hull FC) and Siosiua Taukeiaho (Sydney Roosters).
With other players linked to the club at the moment this post will get updated ahead of the campaign.
Monday, 31 October 2022
World cup journey over for the French
France exited the world cup with barely a whimper after a sound thrashing by Samoa last night.
After some really positive signs against the hosts, England, they couldn't follow it up running out of steam well before the half time hooter sounded.
It will be difficult to assess the tournament, especially with France being the host nation next time out.
What this did show was how much Catalans Dragons over achieve on a weekly basis (and yes that is me giving the coach some slack!!).
I wanted to see some flair and the combination of the Death Man, the Pizza man and Tony Gigot linking up with Morgan from full back and tearing some tiring forwards a new one.
And yet...
Of course there will now be gobs on the internet talking about the death of international rugby league and comparing viewing figures this weekend when the England teams of both codes play.
But for me, we have made a start and should now continue the journey.
A good start would be playing some international matches...
Thursday, 20 October 2022
Friday, 14 October 2022
IMG - Is there a bigger picture I am not seeing?
The confirmation that clubs (including our own) had voted in favour of the recommendations of IMG came yesterday.
If there wasn't a feeling that the Superleague is over its French experiment and wants us out before hand, some of the detail certainly makes that clear.
Unless there is something really key I am missing...
Participation of clubs outside of the UK to be capped and with additional standards to support domestic growth
However, the number of clubs outside of the UK would also be capped at two with a minimum number of domestic players in a match-day 17 among the participation criteria.
Those clubs must also subsidise incremental travel costs of UK clubs until a central contribution can otherwise cover them
...These three statements on their own (allowing for the fact we have covered some costs already) make me think that Steve McNamara wasn't being paranoid in this assertation that Ken Davy wanted Dragons out.
If you look at it objectively we have a great stadium, good fan base, positive currency impact, great climate and location to add good players... etc. etc.
Are the clubs in the M62 corridor looking to protect their dominance of a sport shrinking back into itself I wonder?
Of course there will be internet experts who throw back at us the fact we voted for this... so we must support this.
Nonsense.
This was something that the Dragons would have to support, even if it was kneecapping them and their ability to compete.
These restrictions could well be step one in downgrading the club from an A to a B in a few years and chucking us out of the game.
Bernard has already indicated that he is looking for other people to join him at the top table in Perpignan. Based on this I am not so sure I would invest in us.
Unless there is something really key I am missing...
Now would be a good time to let me know !
Thursday, 6 October 2022
2023 Key dates
As of yet Ken Davy hasn't got us chucked out of the competition so let's get these dates shared...
2022 Upcoming announcements
Magic Weekend venue, date, fixtures: Sunday 16 October
Magic Weekend tickets on sale: Sunday 23 October
2023 Full season fixtures: Thursday 3 November
Grand Final tickets on sale: Sunday 20 November
2023 Key dates
Opening Round: Thursday 16 – Sunday 19 February
Rival Round (Easter): Thursday 6 April – Monday 10 April
(Final) Round 27: Thursday 21 – Sunday 24 September
Eliminators: Friday 29 & Saturday 30 September
Semi Finals: Friday 6 & Saturday 7 October
Grand Final: Saturday 14 October
Wednesday, 5 October 2022
French RL World Cup squad named
Here is the French team for the upcoming Rugby League World Cup
France squad for Rugby League World Cup:
Lambert Belmas (Toulouse)
Alrix Da Costa (Catalans)
Jordan Dezaria (Catalans)
Morgan Escaré (Salford)
Benjamin Garcia (Catalans)
Tony Gigot (Toulouse)
Mickael Goudemand (Catalans)
Benjamin Jullien (Catalans)
Mathieu Laguerre (Catalans)
Samisoni Langi (Catalans)
Corentin Le Cam (Catalans)
Paul Marcon (Toulouse)
Anthony Marion (Toulouse)
Arthur Mourgue (Catalans)
Eloi Pelissier (Toulouse)
Maxime Puech (Albi)
Arthur Romano (Catalans)
César Rougé (Catalans)
Justin Sangaré (Toulouse)
Paul Séguier (Catalans)
Gadwin Springer (Featherstone)
Maxime Stefani (Toulouse)
Louis Jouffret (Halifax)
Fouad Yaha (Catalans)
Ex-coach joins St Helens
Laurent Frayssinous back in the Superleague as assistant to Paul Wellens.
Hooray !!!!! and bon chance.
Friday, 30 September 2022
Elite 1 2022/2023 budgets
| CLUBS | BUDGETS EN € |
 Albi | 650 000 |
 Saint-Estève XIII Catalan | 600 000 |
 Carcassonne | 600 000 |
 Lézignan | 500 000 |
 Limoux | 450 000 |
 Avignon | 350 000 |
 Villeneuve-sur-Lot | 300 000 |
 Pia | 300 000 |
 Toulouse | 100 000 |
 Saint-Gaudens | Non communiqué |
Tuesday, 20 September 2022
Elite 1 preseason 9s
Limoux and Catalans won their respective pools before heading to the final.
Read who won and what happened here >> https://treizemondial.fr/limoux-remport ... i-catalan/
The winning team is pictured by Steve Brady here >> https://twitter.com/catalanmedia/status ... 1671008259
Monday, 12 September 2022
First team season review 2022
Shhh
This can be our secret, but I have been moved to write one last post for the website based on the 2022 Superleague season.
How would I describe it ?
Unfulfilling to be honest. We started slack and with a poor result at St Helens and the season never truly got going after that.
Here are a couple of formed thoughts.
Challenge Cup
The draw of St Helens at home wasn't ideal but after running them close at the Grand Final last season should we have fallen away so convincingly? No, we shouldn't but all too often in 2022 we showed all sides of out personality in a half let alone a complete match.
We did beat Fev but it was closer than anticipated and didn't draw too much praise.
Super League Main Season
Urgh. It was more down that up in terms of performances and not being able to sort out and put out a settled side was no help at all.
Steve McNamara has cited it as a reason for some of the inconsistency but of course, all coaches, even ones still in the competition could do likewise.
I think that the turning point of the season, the deflator of all the optimism came really early on with the Dylan Napa moment of madness at St Helens and the opening night hammering.
I think a lot of our disciplinary issues stemmed from that moment and we were playing catch up from week 2.
There were highlights of the season but a lot also unraveled with the weather affected trip to Huddersfield and subsequent war of words post the home match.
Ken Davy hates us.
The home capitulation to Leeds will live long in the memory as a shocking performance and trumps some of the heavy away beatings we used to ensure regularly before our ascension to contenders.
Super League Play Offs
Nothing more to say really, other than all of the frailties and downsides to our character that were exposed in the regular season and the cup were laid bare and punished by Leeds.
Where Do We Go From Here?
I think that there is plenty of change coming off the park. Bernard has been widely quoted as saying he wants to step back and we need new ideas and drive to keep this level up.
You could argue we maybe need new money but I don't know on that score.
We 100% need a clear out of players, but I feel that the off contract list doesn't contain the names that we should be moving on.
We talk annually about the Elite 1 side providing Super League players and it does. But it would be great to blood them across the season. Not away at Wigan when they are guaranteed to get hosed.
The world cup and the French sides reliance on us will be key here. We struggled post the last world cup with injury, lack of pre-season and fatigue. I see that being relevant in 2023 as well.
In Summary
Steve McNamara has a big job on his hands.
Catalans clearly had the players in the squad to do much better in 2022. But many of those players were no use as they were sat in the stand injured or suspended.
The recruiting so far has been consistent with what I would expect. Highly paid Australians and injury prone Brits.
Let's see how it pans out.
Tuesday, 12 April 2022
This website
It is with great regret and sadness I announce that the regular updating on this website will cease with immediate effect.
The increase in both working and family commitments leaves me no choice and I would rather do no job than a shoddy job.
If you are a UK based Catalans fan and would like to take on the running of this website, please get in touch.
Wednesday, 2 February 2022
Catalans 26-10 Toulouse
Catalans Dragons (10) 26
T : Fouad Yaha,Tom Davies 2, Gil Dudson, Joe Chan
G : Sam Tomkins 3
Toulouse Olympique (6) 10
T : Lloyd White, Chris Hankinson
G : Chris Hankinson
Dragons : S.Tomkins, Davies, Langi, Whare, Yaha, Pearce, Drinkwater, Napa, McIlorum, Bousquet, Whitley, McMeeken, Goudemand
Subs : Jullien, Séguier, M. Laguerre, Romano, May, Dezaria, Rougé, J. Chan, Kasiano
Toulouse : Gigot, Russell, Hankinson, Jussaume, Armitage, Paulo, Albert, Sangaré, White, Bretherton, Peyroux, Dixon, Navarrete
Subs : Pelissier, Garbutt, Puech, Marion, Hansen, Bergal , Stefani, Ross, B. Laguerre, Garcia, Depeyre
Stadium : Gilbert Brutus
Referee : Aaron Moore
It was derby day delight for the Dragons as they took a well earned win over their fellow French Superleaguers TOxii.
The right edge work between Dean Whare and Tom Davies was delicious and saw us get through the visiting defence more than once.
There were only small pieces for returning heroes Tony Gigot, Lucas Albert and Eloi Pelissier to work with and despite people questioning the depth of TOxii this was still a relevant and worthwhile work out for Steve McNamara and the team.
St Gaudens 0-52 St Esteve
St Gaudens (0) 0
T :
G :
St Estève XIII Catalan (28) 52
T : Le Cam, Marty, Rougé, Rey 2, Salies 2, Brochon, Franco
G : Marty 8
Line-ups
St Gaudens : Blasi, De Pian, Minga, Morin, Gorka, Lucas, Dumas, Bertolas, Gahuna, Celerino, Caparros, Vuillermet, Delage
Subs : Filippo, Masse, Sabour, Arréou
St Estève XIII Catalan : Brochon, Rey, Marty, Laurent, franco, Rougé, Salies, Scimone, Le Cam, Jobe, T. Chan, Llong, Vailhen
Subs : Goffin, Humbert, Ribas, Castano
The long wait for a road win this winter is over!
Tuesday, 18 January 2022
Integrity fears as France bars all unvaccinated visitors
The French government have moved to bar inward travel for all unvaccinated visitors, seemingly on the back of the farce in Australia with Novak Djokovic adding on a particular clarification that no exemptions will be made for sportspeople competing in France.
Super League, quite obviously, will have two French clubs in the upcoming season. Wakefield chairman Michael Carter - a man, incidentally, for who we have a huge amount of time - was quoted on the BBC yesterday saying he has six members of his first team squad unvaccinated. While he was his usual eloquent self in saying he isn't going to force anyone to get jabbed and that the risk of not playing games may sway some of his current refuseniks, his larger concern that should the rules change mid-season that other sides will be able to send full-strength sides while Wakefield - at Toulouse first up - may well not.
While we have a certain, small amount of sympathy with his predicament, there is a simple solution.
Players: Get. Jabbed.
It's really not a problem. It's a tiny jab, you may feel a bit crappy for a couple of days, tops, but then you're fine. You're big brave boys who treat pain and injury as an occupational hazard and you won't have a vaccination? Give over. You've already had plenty of vaccinations in your life, so don't give us anything about a blanket apprehension to them. And don't come the 'don't know what's in it' lark given all the supplements you're on - and potentially worse. Also, if you've ever had a pie at Featherstone, then that's something you don't know what it contains. Get over yourself, stop listening to Stuart Fielden who has clearly had too many bangs on the head, and get jabbed. Or make yourself unavailable for one-sixth of your club's away games in 2022. While risking your own health and that of your club-mates, club staff and everyone you come into contact with.
Get. Jabbed.
Thursday, 13 January 2022
2022 Kit update
The new Catalans Macron kits have been launched to mixed reviews it has to be said.
I have to say I don't mind them but for UK based supporters of the club its going to be a bit of a stretch to buy one.
I priced up a home shirt on the website with taxes and shipping and it was over £100 when converted back.
I could get a NRL jersey shipped over for less!
So I have asked the official supporters club if there is anything that can be done via the Dragons or Macron to make kit available in the UK without the additional costs.
It would still be over £70 for a shirt.
Saturday, 8 January 2022
Carcassonne 41-6 St Esteve
A tough 2021/2022 season continues for St Esteve after this heavy defeat to title chasing Carcassonne.
Carcassonne (12) 41
T : Gambaro 2, Alberola, Francis, Bouregba, Dauliac, Bitigri
G : Herrero 6
DG : Herrero
St Estève XIII Catalan (0) 6
T :Parenti
G : Brochon
Friday, 7 January 2022
Wheelchair team win over Montaban
Montauban (20) 35
Catalans Dragons (23) 46
T : Bourson 3, G.Clausells 2, Vargas, Lacombe, Doré
G : G. Clausells 7
Close at the interval the Dragons were able to get ahead in the second half and secure the win.
Thursday, 6 January 2022
Women open their season with a win
Pia (4) 14
T : Gallina 2, Pacull
G : Herpin 1
St Estève XIII Catalan (30) 54
T : Bianchini 4, Rivas, Akpa, Abelanet, Roses, Fourcoy, Canal
G : Collette 7
A great derby win to star the season for the Goddesses who dispatched the PIA Donkeys, putting over 50 points on them.
St Esteve 32 - 4 Toulouse
St Estève XIII Catalan (20) 32
T : Parenti, Carré, Franck 2, Scimone, Khedimi
G : Marty 4
Toulouse Olympique (0) 4
T : Stefani
G :
A win and potentially the Dracs back on track after beating their soon to be Superleague rivals TO13.
Dragons launch new Macron kits
Despite a bit of online stick about the look of the kits, I really like them.
I won't be getting either though based on the crazy pricing online and large delivery from the EU to the UK.
Shame.
An apology
The site has been thoroughly neglected in the run up to Christmas thanks to my workload with the festive period being wiped out by the whole household testing positive for Covid.
Some level of service will be resumed going forward.
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