Warrington Wolves 20 Catalans Dragons 40

SOMETIMES the manner of performance can mean more than the result.

Supporters understand that their team has no God-given right to win every game. But a competitive display, with 100 per cent given, is appreciated by fans, despite still feeling disappointment at a loss.

What hurts the most is when a team does not appear to give its all for the colour of the shirt.

And when that happens in the first home game of a season, the emotion in the passionate is felt tenfold.

Jimmy Lowes, in his first full year as a head coach, needed Super League XIV to get off to a good start in order to win some faith from fans who were despondent with displays at the end of 2008, a campaign brought to a crippling halt after a cruel succession of injuries.

Apathy had not left some, however, as Saturday night’s ‘gate’ was almost 3,000 lower than any other opening home game at The Halliwell Jones Stadium.

And now, just two games into the new season, the boos that hauntingly echoed at the end of a third successive embarrassing defeat to Catalans Dragons left the club’s chiefs well informed of how many of the supporters are feeling. Totally gutted!

Lowes has not been handed any favours by his team’s faltering opening.

After a second game in which Wolves surrendered a commanding lead, many supporters’ hopes of a good year have already disappeared.

Wolves will go to Wakefield tomorrow, Friday, attempting to avoid an eighth successive defeat, a record Warrington have not experienced since 1997.

Although Catalans are a strong side, as their third-place finish last year proved, conceding four tries in 12 minutes in the final quarter – two of them when Kevin Walters’ side only had 12 men on the field – stunk of throwing in the towel.

Warrington, with Martin Gleeson, Vinnie Anderson and Chris Bridge back in the starting line-up, were looking good at 18-6 nine minutes into added time at the end of the first half.

But Catalans were offered a lifeline as big Olivier Elima scored.

Wolves started to knock on frequently in the second half and Catalans took advantage as the defence became bedraggled.

One-on-one misses cost Warrington points, as did a failure to cover the full width as crafty French half backs Thomas Bosc and Shane Perry were offered the freedom of the borough.

Somehow, Catalans, who were defeated 30-8 at home by Huddersfield a week earlier, managed to turn their game around inside seven days.

Wolves must now act just as quickly to produce 80 minutes of winning graft at Belle Vue.

Match Facts

Warrington Wolves 20 Catalans Dragons 40

Wolves: Chris Riley; Chris Hicks (1t, 4g), Martin Gleeson, Chris Bridge, Matt King (1t); Lee Briers, Michael Monaghan; Adrian Morley, Mickey Higham, Garreth Carvell (1t), Louis Anderson, Ben Westwood, Vinnie Anderson. Subs used: Ben Harrison, Paul Wood, Matty Blythe, Paul Rauhihi.

Dragons: Clint Greenshields (2t); Cyril Stacul (1t), Adam Mogg, Steven Bell, Dimitri Pelo (1t); Thomas Bosc (6g), Shane Perry; Dane Carlaw, Jean Philippe Baile (1t), Jerome Guisset, Jamal Fakir, Jason Croker, Gregory Mounis (1t). Olivier Elima (1t), David Ferriol, Remi Casty, Cyril Gossard.

Referee: Jason Robinson

Scoring: Mounis sneaks behind Riley to pounce on Bosc’s grubber, Bosc converts, 0-6; Bridge stands in a tackle and hands try on a plate for King, 22mins, 4-6; Carvell ploughs over from Higham’s precision pass, 26mins, Hicks converts, 10-6; Gleeson sucks in two defenders from a scrum and sends Hicks over, 33mins, Hicks converts, 16-6; Hicks slots a penalty goal, 40+ mins, 18-6; Elima brushes off Louis Anderson and Briers for a crash-over try, 40+ mins, Bosc converts, 18-12; Monaghan slips off Greenshields who ducks below Gleeson and Riley to score, 44mins, Bosc converts, 18-18; Hicks boots a penalty goal, 58mins, 20-18; Perry feeds Greenshields with an inside ball that foils marker defenders Blythe and Carvell, 61mins, Bosc converts, 20-24; Blythe knocks on and Dragons cash in with Bosc’s long pass cutting out two defenders and putting Stacul over, 67mins, 20-28; Higham knocks on and Baile slips under Riley from dummy half, 70mins, Bosc converts, 20-34; Bosc’s cut-out pass frees Pelo on the outside of Westwood and the winger shoves off Riley to touch down, 73mins, 20-38; Bosc completes the scoring with a penalty, 80mins, 20-40.

Sin bin: Ferriol, 58mins

Pens: Wolves 13 Dragons 10

Attendance: 7,947

Warrington Guardian top men: Morley 3pts, V Anderson 2pts, Hicks 1pt.

Interesting note: Catalans became first team to post 40 points or more against Warrington at The Halliwell Jones Stadium since St Helens’ 40-12 victory on May 28, 2007.