CATALANS DRAGONS are “ready for war” against St Helens this weekend in the latest of a series of intense battles between the two teams.
Coach Steve McNamara said the rivalry between the two sides has been ramping up ever since he took over in Perpignan and he expects Saturday’s match at Stade Gilbert Brutus to be another in a growing series of thrillers.
He said: “Matches between us, especially since the 2018 semi-final when we beat them and went to Wembley, every game has been a war, home or away and I see no difference this Saturday night.
“It should be another great game in Perpignan.”
McNamara may have to rearrange his troops against Saints after picking up a couple of injuries in Catalans’ 26-4 win in monsoon-like conditions at Castleford Tigers but he feels he has sufficient firepower thanks to a veteran English warhorse and a swashbuckling young Frenchman.
35-year-old Sam Tomkins and 19-year-old Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet were standout players for the Dragons at Castleford at fullback and scrumhalf and McNamara is hoping for similar performances against Saints.
“Romain Navarrete has probably fractured his cheekbone and Fouad Yaha has done his hamstring so there will be more changes.
“Bayley Sironen is very close to being fit for the St Helens game and Tommy Makinson is in the same position, while Tariq Sims and Théo Fages are not too far off either, so we should have those available soon.
“It was Sam’s first Super League game of the season, we’ve missed him, he trained most of pre-season with Luke Keary and Arthur Mourgue in the halves, so to have Sam working so well with young Guillermo was great.
“Guillermo has been out for 12 weeks because he broke his scaphoid (a small bone near the thumb) playing for the reserves so he hasn’t been an option for us so far this season but he was today and I thought he did quite well.”
