Filed under: Rugby League
Catalans Dragons produced the shock of the Super League season to date by ending table-topping Warrington Wolves' six-match winning run at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.Meanwhile, the weekend began with arguably the best game of the 2011 campaign so far as Wigan Warriors fought back to earn a dramatic draw at Leeds.
Hull FC 18 Castleford Tigers 20
The basics: Referee James Child can under fire from both coaches after Castleford's narrow win heaped pressure on Hull coach Richard Agar.
Child awarded 27 penalties and showed the red card to Sean Long as the Black and Whites fell to a sixth defeat from eight games.
In contrast the Tigers continue to fly high with just one defeat to date, and centre Willie Isa grabbed two tries in their sixth win of 2011.
What it means: Castleford are level on points with leaders Warrington and Huddersfield and still have a game in hand on both. But Hull continue to struggle at the wrong end of the table.
They said it: "I've got seasoned Test players in there coming in shaking their heads in disbelief. I thought both sides came to play, the game started great, a good tempo, everybody into it and it never got any flow and was punctuated by ridiculous decisions." -- Hull coach Richard Agar.
"We've had the referee twice and had two very similar performances. There were 37 penalties in the first game and 27 tonight. I'm frustrated. We got the two points but it doesn't hide the game never flowed into a rhythm." -- Castleford coach Terry Matterson.
Leeds Rhinos 22 Wigan Warriors 22
The basics: Sam Tomkins' last second penalty earned a dramatic point for Wigan after they recovered from a 22-4 deficit in the final quarter.
The Rhinos had dominated much of the game up until that point, and with hooker Danny Buderus in fine form they appeared in total control.
But a fine try from Tomkins sparked a late Wigan revival, and when they were penalised for holding down a Warriors attack in the last minute, Tomkins held his nerve for a share of the spoils.
What it means: This was arguably Leeds' best performance of the season despite their late collapse and they proved that they can compete with the best this year. Wigan's late resilience showed exactly why they are champions.
They said it: "Wigan stepped up and we faded. We stopped playing and got into an arm wrestle, which we didn't want to. It was the best we've played by a long way, something we've been trying to get to since round one, so we can be excited about where we can get to in terms of performance." -- Rhinos boss Brian McDermott.
"At half-time I was very comfortable in the way we knew we could play and we clicked in the last 20 minutes. That's how we wanted to play and we've got to make sure we do that at the start of games. We're not far off from cracking it and getting it right." -- Wigan coach Michael Maguire.
St Helens 34 Hull KR 16
The basics: St Helens made it three wins in a row as James Roby sparkled in an accomplished win.
The England hooker was outstanding while prop Louis McCarthy-Scarsbrook scored two tries, and James Graham one on his 200th appearance.
Rovers continue to struggle to find any consistency, though centre Kris Welham continued his recent good form with two more tries.
What it means: Saints remain on the trail of Super League's pacesetters and have recovered well from their home defeat to Harlequins in March. But the Robins are lacking in confidence and Willie Mason has not yet made the expected impact.
They said it: "I thought our forwards were very impressive tonight. In the last couple of weeks I have thought the halves have been coming along good and the backs did some good things. But tonight I thought the forwards were very good." -- Saints coach Royce Simmons.
"Defensively we gave up some tries on our goal line and that was not pleasing. It is the story of the season so far, we are good in periods but not in others. Unfortunately the not-so-good periods are costing us lots of points at the moment." -- Rovers coach Justin Morgan.
Salford City Reds 10 Crusaders 16
The basics: Crusaders recorded their first win since the opening day as Gareth Thomas starred in a gritty performance.
Thomas scored the decisive try in the closing stages after producing a titanic defensive display, while recent signing Jordan Tansey also crossed in a promising performance.
Salford fell short of the form showed in recent wins over Hull KR and Catalans despite second half tries to Ray Cashmere and Jodie Broughton.
What it means: With his squad increasing every week Crusaders coach Iestyn Harris will hope that this provides a turning point for the Welsh. The Reds had a real chance to make it three wins in a row and will want to bounce back quickly.
They said it: "It was a missed opportunity and very disappointing. We did not do ourselves justice, particularly in the first half. It was frustrating because from a team who had looked good for three weeks we went to a team showing no respect for the opposition." -- Salford director of rugby Steve Simms.
"It was very important to get a win because we have not played as badly as all our recent results show. It was definitely a big improvement defensively although we need to be more clinical offensively. We have been trying to win on big plays but it's doing the little things right that's important." -- Crusaders coach Iestyn Harris.
Bradford Bulls 24 Harlequins 22
The basics: Bradford withheld a late charge headed by former Bull Karl Pryce to record a fourth win of the season.
Pryce scored a hat trick of tries and created another for Tony Clubb but Quins were made to pay for a sluggish display in the middle part of the game.
Bradford playmaker Brett Kearney flourished during that period and was one of four Bulls try scorers along with Olivier Elima, Matt Diskin and Paul Sykes.
What it means: The Bulls are showing continuing signs of improvement under coach Mick Potter. And while this was three defeats in a row for Quins, they showed plenty of guts at the end.
They said it: "I knew Harlequins would keep going to the end. We've got the two points and that's all we were after. We still need to improve in some areas. We're getting game time with each other, we're still finding our feet." -- Bradford assistant boss Francis Cummins.
"We ended up lowering our standards in a poor game. There were two teams making errors and giving away penalties, neither took the game by the scruff of the neck." -- Quins coach Rob Powell.
Huddersfield Giants 34 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 10
The basics: Huddersfield Giants produced an accomplished second half display to keep pace with Warrington and Castleford at the top.
The Wildcats were fully in the game when Ben Jeffries crossed early in the second half, before the Giants pulled away.
Graeme Horne and Michael Lawrence both finished with two tries while coach Nathan Brown continued to rotate his squad by making six changes.
What it means: This was good preparation for Huddersfield ahead of their mouth-watering clash with Warrington on Friday night. Wakefield are currently bottom but continue to show plenty of resilience despite their threadbare squad.
They said it: "The players today didn't look hungry at the start. There was a lack of intensity. The improvement wasn't down to what I said at half-time, but more what the players did. They came out with more aggression in the second half." -- Giants coach Nathan Brown.
"We showed good skill and a strong commitment to defence in the first half. But we've got to realise rugby league lasts 80 minutes. It's not 40 really good minutes and then 40 minutes of hanging on." -- Wakefield coach John Kear.
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Source: http://www.fanhouse.co.uk/2011/04/04/super-league-round-up-week-7-catalans-stun-wolves-tomkins-save/
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