Thursday 14 April 2016 23:16, UK
The Dragons take on St Helens in Round 11, and we take a look at three key battles in Thursday's clash on Sky Sports.
St Helens might be sixth in the table, but a win at Langtree Park over the Dragons would see them go level on points with the French outfit, who are currently second on points difference.
A corker is expected on Thursday night as the two sides clash, and here we look at three key battles that might settle the outcome:
One of the key areas in deciding this one could come in the halves, and in particular a Frenchman who plies his trade in St Helens colours.
It's been an interesting season so far for Theo Fages. Keiron Cunningham sung the praises of his new signing in pre-season, but played the half-back just twice off the bench before Good Friday. Fages then came back into the side against Wigan before producing a brilliant display in the win over Warrington last week.
Cunningham heralded his performance and it was easy to see why, especially given his assist for Jack Ashworth's try. His composure with both boot and ball showed just why the Saints were so eager to sign him from Salford, and they will hope for more of the same from Fages again this weekend.
While a Frenchman will guide St Helens around the park, Catalans' first-choice half-backs are Australian and English, and the one from Australia is one of the star names in Super League.
Todd Carney is back in the 19-man squad after missing the last two games with injury, and he can sprinkle even more stardust on a side currently playing at the top of their game. He's scored three tries so far in 2016, and has also provided eight assists - the best in the Dragons side.
Carney excels at putting other players through gaps and it will be a massive boost for the Dragons if he does return from injury as expected this week.
St Helens' outside backs have been decimated with injury this season, while the Dragons have some exciting players on show out wide.
For the Saints, one staple in their line-up since Round 3 has been the presence of Shannon McDonnell at full-back. He's filling a Jonny Lomax-shaped hole in that position, whose return date from injury is still up in the air.
With wingers Tommy Makinson and Adam Swift both on the treatment table too, St Helens are relying on the experience of the 28-year-old McDonnell in their back three.
The full-back has endured plenty of injuries of his own during his time in Super League, but he's currently enjoying a run of games and has come up with five try assists so far in 2016.
He's not the strongest on kick returns from the back, making just an average of just 6.37m per drive so far, but McDonnell is a much-needed calm head in a young backline.
In the Catalans line-up is the exciting Tony Gigot. He's been an ever-present in 2016, featuring eight times at full-back and twice at centre. Gigot made his reputation as a versatile player, but having edged Morgan Escare out of the full-back slot in pre-season, the 25-year-old has repaid the faith shown in him.
He's made serious metres on kick returns, 1355m exactly, at an average gain of 8.11m. That's the most ground covered by any Catalans player, the third best in Super League and the best of any full-back in the competition.
Gigot has also crossed for four tries and made seven clean breaks - the joint best in Dragons colours - so St Helens will need to be wary of his threat with ball in hand.
It's another meeting of two enormous front rows this week and the physical battle between the two packs will certainly be one to watch.
We picked out Alex Walmsley last week as he went up against the big Warrington front rowers and he turned in a typically robust performance, with one run standing out as he bowled over several defenders leading to Matty Dawson's try.
With Cunningham choosing to use Kyle Amor off the bench in the last two games, Walmsley needs to set the tone from the off with plenty of go-forward along with fellow front rower Andre Savelio.
Numbers remain impressive for Walmsley, and he is just behind Amor in terms of metres made and average gain per drive in the St Helens ranks. But if the big prop forward can lay a platform against the huge Dragons pack early on, Saints will stand a good chance on Thursday.
One of the signings of Super League so far could be Catalans forward Dave Taylor. He's been used mainly in the front row, but is also an option in the second row, and with Remi Casty returning from injury, Frayssinous could opt to shuffle his pack.
Taylor's numbers are impressive. His 1183 metres made is the second best for the Catalans, with an average gain of 8.45m per drive. He's also scored five tries and provided 15 offloads - seven more than any team-mate.
Taylor's defence is also strong, 203 successful hits with just 15 misses so far in 2016. He's formed a formidable front row in recent weeks with fellow Aussie test footballer Willie Mason, and their go-forward in the middle of the park could be key to any Catalans success this season.
