Super League XXX – Catalans Dragons vs St Helens Tips, TV and Betting Preview

We have one match in the Super League XXX season on Saturday and we head back to France for a clash between the Catalans Dragons and St Helens, one which has picked up plenty of history in recent times.

These two have played some big matches such as Challenge Cup finals and Grand Finals and now they meet in a regular season match which could be seen as quite important for both of the teams involved.

Where to watch

The match will be shown live and in full on Sky Sports+ in the UK where the short build-up to the game begins at 5.25pm UK time ahead of the 5.30pm kick off.

Catalans Dragons

It took a little while for the Catalans Dragons to get to grips with things this season. They lost their opening three Super League matches, although defeats to Hull FC, Warrington Wolves and Leigh Leopards might not look drastic come the end of the season. They rebounded with a couple of solid wins either side of a Challenge Cup victory and all of a sudden things are starting to look a little brighter for the French outfit and they’ll be aiming to kick on now.

The secret to the success of the Dragons in those last two matches was their defence. They didn’t concede a point to the Leeds Rhinos and only let four points in against the Castleford Tigers. There is a strong case to be made that opponents will get much tougher but you can only beat what is in front of you have to be fair to the French outfit they have done that. We know they can be tough to contain in French conditions so the improved defence is welcome.

St Helens

It is hard to get a real handle on St Helens this season. They have three wins in the Super League and two defeats and their form has come the other way around to Catalans Dragons in that they have started like a house on fire, although you could question exactly what they beat in the Salford Red Devils, Castleford Tigers and Wakefield Trinity should you so wish, but then lost to Hull KR and Warrington Wolves either side of beating Leeds Rhinos in the Challenge Cup.

Again, there is no shame in losing to Hull KR and Warrington Wolves but those are the sorts of matches that St Helens will be judged on and they came up short. They only scored 10 and 12 points in those matches respectively and that is an issue which is beginning to become a problem. They need to start scoring points against the better sides and this will be a guide to where they are in that regard. They performed well defensively in both of those games which is a positive.

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Team News

Catalans Dragons will welcome two former St Helens players back into their squad for this match with Theo Fages and Tommy Makinson returning from injuries. Bayley Sironen is also back in the 21-man party for the contest.

St Helens coach Paul Wellens has the luxury of only making one change to his travelling outfit for this match. Joe Batchelor missed last week because of the head injury protocols but he has passed those now and he comes in for Curtis Sironen.

Betting

There is no reason to think that we are in for anything but a competitive match here but St Helens look to be playing in moments rather than firing on all cylinders to me and that would represent a bit of an issue when they head to France. Admittedly the conditions in France at this time of year aren’t as brutal as they can be and that is very much a positive for the Saints but I didn’t like much about their defeats to either Hull KR or Warrington and I think they have a bit to prove here.

Catalans Dragons began the season slowly but there was a huge turnover in France between last season and this one so we probably should have allowed for a bit of a slow start but there have been signs that they are slowly getting themselves together and back on home soil I expect them to show that. There are no major injuries for Catalans for this one which is a positive, the backs are beginning to combine well and we never have a worry about the physicality about the French outfit up front. At even money I think the hosts are the bet here.

Tips

Back Catalans Dragons to beat St Helens for a 3/10 stake at 2.00 with Coral