DESPITE the Dragons’ difficult start to the season, returning prodigal son Elliott Whitehead believes they are “in a much better place” than when he first wore the blood and gold 12 years ago.
The 35-year-old Bradford-born second-rower has gone full circle in his career, which began at his beloved Odsal, switched to Perpignan in 2013 then a nine-year spell at the very top of the NRL with Canberra Raiders before returning for a swansong season in the south of France.
Wins against Leeds Rhinos in the league and Featherstone Rovers in the cup have put a smile on Whitehead’s face after a tricky opening phase to his return for Les Dracs.
“Despite results (a struggle against Halifax Panthers in the cup and three straight Super League defeats) I am still very confident in the squad we’ve got here; there is no reason why these players can’t go on to win things,” he said.
“Catalans kick-started my career and I will always be grateful for that. We had a good squad when I was here first but the infrastructure and development of the club, particularly with junior development, is on another level now.
“The investment the club has made under coach Steve McNamara in young French players has been massive and will benefit the entire game for years to come.”
Catalans started this season like they ended the last with attacking difficulties stemming from an unsettled regular halfback pairing.
But Whitehead agrees with McNamara that when the backs are in trouble, it’s up to the forwards to take over.
He added, “We’ve shown that the other side of our game is strong, it might not have been a great game but our defence was really strong against Leeds. That’s the way we want to defend and we will stick to that process and the rest of the game will come.
“You can only really build a confident attack on the back of a strong defence and I’m looking forward to what we can do with the ball in hand.
“If we can stop turning the ball up to the opposition I really believe we will be a force really soon.”
Whitehead has settled on familiar sandy ground since returning to France with a familiar face alongside him. He said, “I spent more than nine years at Canberra after two and a half years in France and now I’m back in Perpignan, so it’s good to get the chance for my family to come and watch me in the UK and that gives me even more reason to want to win some silverware.
“I live in Canet near the beach, just like I did the first time, I wanted somewhere I was familiar with and it’s also helped having Nick Cotric here with me, because I know him so well from our time at Canberra.
“He’s started strongly for the Dragons despite our poor form in the opening games. We just chill over coffees together after training.
“He got some stick the other week when he introduced his new winners’ song in the dressing room after the Leeds game, it’s definitely a work in progress and hopefully we all get used to it soon with a few more wins under our belt.”
Whether or not that new winning song becomes a classic for Catalans remains to be seen this season, but two straight wins suggests they are beginning to hit the right notes.
* Read an in-depth interview with Elliott Whitehead in the next issue of Rugby League World magazine.
