It was fourth against fifth as Saints travelled to the south of France to take on the Catalans Dragons. The home side needed a win to take second place, two points behind league lading Hull FC but a loss for Saints would see them losing touch with the battle for a top four finish.

Pat Richards was back for the home side after missing last weeks win at Leeds Rhinos, and Nathan Percival returned for Saints after their mauling by Warrington last weekend.

The signs looked ominous early for Saints when after failing to collect the kick-off they gave away two quick penalties, the second being kicked by Pat Richards to give the home side a 2-0 lead within the opening minute.

But the first try of the game came on twelve minutes through Louis McCarthy-Scarsbrook when he took a terrific short pass from Jordan Turner to find a gap and go twenty to score. Jack Owens added the extras for a Saints lead.

A one-hundred metre try, run for forty metres and finished off by Fouad Yaha, and converted by Pat Richards put the Dragons back into the lead at 8-6 with twenty-one minutes on the clock.

On twenty-five Shannon McDonnell was held up over the line for Saints and ten minutes later Lucas Albert threw a dummy and jinked past two tacklers to score. Pat Richards failed to add the conversion, leaving the margin between the teams at just one converted try.

A thirty-ninth minute, twenty metre Todd Carney drop goal, extended the lead to seven points at the interval. Neither side had really dominated but as the scoreline suggested, it was the Dragons who just edged it, despite Saints best efforts to disrupt the home sides game.

Catalans struggled at the start of the second half. Morgan Escare knocked on a kick through and after the pressure of two goal line drop outs Adam Swift found a massive overlap wide left to walk in. Owens missed the conversion but the margin was down to three points.

Jodie Broughton seems to get a try in every Dragons game and on fifty-two he got another when he took full advantage of a couple of quick penalties to go over on the overlap to score in the right corner. Richards missed the conversion leaving the Dragons with a 17-10 lead.

Within two minutes Escare took a Yaha pass to outpace the Saints defenders and cross without a hand on him. Richards missed the conversion but it was a double-whammy that would take some overhauling from Saints.

Broughton added his second just before the hour as the tiring Saints defence let him walk over and improve the angle giving Tomas Bosc, replacing Richards with the kicking, a simple conversion. Bosc added a penalty on sixty-two after a shoulder charge, and at 29-10 it was game over.

On sixty-seven, some magical Dragons play ended with a Broughton kick palm-back into the hands of Tony Gigot who just had to drop over the line for the four pointer. Bosc was just wide from the touchline. It had been twenty points for Catalans without response.

Shannon McDonald got scant consolation on seventy-five when he danced through a broken Dragons defence. Owens slotted over a simple conversion for 33-16, the last scoring action of the game.

This was the eleventh win in the last thirteen for a Catalans side who have really found their feet in 2016. They are back up to second in a competitive top four, but it is looking like a mountain to climb for Saints to get themselves into a play-off position over the next couple of months.

Dragons: Escare (T), Broughton (2T), Gigot (T), Richards (2G), Yaha (T), Carney (DG), Albert (T), Taylor, Pelissier, Casty, Stewart, Horo, Baitieri. Subs: Bosquet, Bosc (2G), Maria, Navarrete.

Saints: McDonnell (T), Owens (2G), Dawson, Percival, Swift (T), Fages, Turner, Tasi, Roby, Amor, Greenwood, Wilkin, McCarthy-Scarsbrook (T). Subs: Vea, Walmsley, Thompson, Knowles.

Referee: Chris Campbell.

Attendance: