Eighth played ninth for a chance at seventh spot as Wakefield Trinity got on the plane to the south of France to face the Catalans Dragons in round nine of Super League.

The bookies were tipping a home win having given Trinity an eight-point start on the handicap coupon and without a win at the Stade Gilbert Brutus in the last seven years, history was on the side of Steve McNamara’s men.

Coming into the game the sides were separated on the table by only by points difference, barring a massive score for one of the sides, the winner would replace Warrington Wolves in seventh place in the table and be on the same league points as Leeds and St Helens ahead of them.

If the opening stages were indicative of what the rest of the game would be like, we were in for a cagey, tetchy, end to end, arm-wrestle.

Wakefield broke the deadlock on seventeen when Max Jowitt took a Josh Griffin offload to spin off his tackler and get the ball on the ground. Jowitt added the extra two for a 6-0 lead to the visitors, just about deserved on the balance of play.

Seven minutes later and Trinity went in again, another offload, this one from Braden Hamlin-Uele, into the hands of Liam Hood who had a simple two metre run to the line to score. Jowitt hit the mark again and it was 12-0.

But the Dragons were not going to throw in the towel. A captains try from Benjamin Garcia on thirty-one reduced the arrears as he pushed through a crowd of tacklers to score. Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet added the conversion, the Dragons now just a converted try adrift.

The Dragons were down to twelve men on thirty-four when Luke Keary was sin-binned for a tackle to the head with mitigation. Ninety seconds later he was joined by Isaiah Vagana for exactly the same offence. Aispuro-Bichet accepted the invitation to kick the resulting penalty and there were four points between the sides at the interval.

With forty seconds left on the clock a sensational Wakefield try pushed the visitors further ahead at the interval. Great passing and offloading ended with Josh Griffin going through a gap in the defensive line. Jowitt added the goal, the lead at the interval was ten points.

Steve McNamara delivered a half time rocket to his troops and two minutes after the restart Chris Satae was unstoppable as he span out of a tackle and twisted his way to the line to ground. Aispuro-Bichet added the conversion and again the margin was down to four points.

Wakefield spilled the ball ten out from their own line on forty-eight and gifted possession to the home side. On the third tackle Laguerre went over in the right corner, but the video referee ruled that he had a foot in touch before he grounded.

Nine minutes remained when the Dragons drew level, Nick Cotric chancing his arm, fending off the last tackler and grounding one-handed in the corner. Aispuro-Bichet nailed the touchline conversion to edge his side in front, Wakefield their own worst enemies as the Dragons scored twelve unanswered second half points.

The Dragons were penalised for offside on seventy-seven and despite a Captains Challenge the decision stood. Jowitt was ice cool as he kicked the penalty goal to level the scores with ninety seconds remaining.

Mason Lino attempted a forty metre drop goal with five seconds remaining, but the ball drifted wide of the uprights and the game entered Golden Point.

A minute into the first period Lino was sin-binned for a high tackle on Aispuro-Bichet. The resulting penalty moved the Dragons downfield and with just two minutes on the clock Reimis Smith crashed over the line to ground. The referee sent the decision up as a TRY and there was nothing to over-rule, the try being confirmed, along with the win for the Catalans.

There really was nothing to choose between the two sides and the game going to extra time was proof of that. It was the Dragons who move up to seventh in the table, Wakefield in ninth and two places off the top six. The Dragons were poor in the first half but rejuvenated in the second, but in the end they just held on in normal time and snatched the winner after a moment of indiscipline from Lino.

Catalans Dragons: Aispuro-Bichet (G 4/4), Makinson, Laguerre, Smith (T), Cotric (T), Keary (SB on 34), Fages, Pangai Junior, Garcia (T), Bousquet, Sims, Whitehead, Partington. Subs: Da Costa, Satae (T), Sironen, Navarrete. 18^th Man: Rouge.

Wakefield Trinity: Rourke, Scott, Hall, Pratt, Johnstone, Jowitt (T, G 3/3), Lino, McMeeken, Hood (T), Hamlin-Uele, Vagana (SB on 35), Griffin (T), Pitts. Subs: Atoni, Cozza, Smith, Faatili. 18^th Man: Croft.

Half-Time: 8-18.

Full-Time: 20-20.  Golden Point: 24-20.

Score Progression: 0-4, 0-6, 0-10, 0-12, 4-12, 6-12, (SB), (SB), 8-12, 8-16, 8-18 : HT: 12-18, 14-18, 18-18, 20-18, 20-20 :FT: 24-20 : GP.

Lead Exchanges: Wakefield – Square – Catalans – Square - Catalans.

Referee: Aaron Moore.