Steve Menzies

Winning any game as a rugby league coach is a great feeling, but to win your first one is an even better feeling, and for new Catalans Dragons coach Laurent Frayssinous, he did just that – as his side defeated Hull KR 32-24, in an entertaining contest.

With Trent Robinson departing the club last season to join the Sydney Roosters, it was Frayssinous who was given the task of coaching the Dragons, as he dedicated the win to “everyone that believed in the team.”

“We had a meeting and said we wanted them to be proud of what we did on the pitch,” Frayssinous said.

“The players showed that today and it’s a good sign of the camaraderie within the squad.

“That win is dedicated to all the guys who believe in this team. I feel very happy to get my first win as coach.

“I was pleased with the performance we put in for the first 50 minutes of the game.

“After that, we didn’t respect the ball, so we are not very happy about that. But two points is two points and I think we deserved the win.”

With the decision to have a 6-week pre-season under the belts, the French coach believes that that is what paid dividends, and he hopes it can have the same effect heading into future rounds.

“I think at the end we were tired,” he said.

“The benefit of our short pre-season will come at the end of the season.

“We travel every two weeks and the travel is tough. The combinations on the pitch could have been better, but mentally, they were ready to play. We will be fresher later in the season.”

Despite finishing just eight points behind in the clash, Hull KR coach Craig Sandercock was critical of parts of his side’s performance, particularly errors, penalties and forced offloads.

“Too many errors, forced offloads and penalties cost us. We worked hard in pre-season not to do those things in the friendlies.

“It was very disappointing because I really fancied our chances. The play count was two to one in their favour. They got the advantage and rolled on with it.”

By ricky

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