Catalan Dragons (10) 31
Tries: Blanch 2, Millard, Baile, Sa
Goals: Dureau 5
Drop Goals: Dureau

Crusaders (2) 18
Tries: White, Tansey, Sammut
Goals: Schifcofske 3

Catalan Dragons overcame Crusaders' spirited comeback to move within reach of the Super League top four.

Scott Millard and Jean Philippe Baile crossed to earn a 10-2 interval lead.

Lloyd White pulled one back before two in three minutes from Setaimata Sa and Damien Blanch appeared to have settled the outcome in Perpignan.

But Crusaders scored twice more through Jordan Tansey and Jarrod Sammut before Scott Dureau's late drop goal and Blanch's second try sealed victory.

Blanch's injury-time effort took his tally to 10 for the season, while Dureau also kicked five goals for an 11-point individual haul.

That all helped Catalans cement fifth place with their eighth win in 10 games - moving them to within a point of last season's two Grand Finalists, Wigan and St Helens.

After a scoreless first 20 minutes, Clinton Schifcofske's penalty gave Crusaders the lead.

But it was Scotland international hooker Ian Henderson, coming off the bench to dominate the ruck and midfield areas, who really got the Catalans roaring.

Catalans' victory maintained the sequence of teams doing the double in this fixture, having won 32-22 on Welsh territory in March.

The Dragons also did the double over Crusaders in the Welsh side's first season in Super League in 2009.

Crusaders then got their own back by doing the league double over the Frenchmen last season, although Catalans won at the Racecourse Ground in the Challenge Cup, thanks to a last-minute Thomas Bosc drop goal.

Catalan Dragons coach Trent Robinson:

"Over recent weeks I've seen us improve a lot during games and that is why we have been able to come up with the results we have.

"I don't think we improved during this game, but credit for the boys for hanging in there and getting the points.

"Ian Henderson is a top Super League player. He was outstanding last week and played 80 minutes, and he had to back it up again this week. We're just happy to have him here playing like that."

Crusaders coach Iestyn Harris:

"I felt we matched them punch for punch throughout, but just lacked a little bit of execution at key times.

"It was a couple of cheap things we did that gave them the cheap points. We didn't return a kick-off which they scored from, we made an error from dummy half that they picked up and a couple of passes later they scored.

"Outside of that, I thought our effort and desire was superb and, if we keep putting in effort like that we will see the rewards before the end of the season and hopefully things will start to turn around for us."

Catalan Dragons: Greenshields; Blanch, Baile, Millard, Vaccari; Sa, Dureau; Ferriol, Pelissier, Baitieri, Menzies, Raguin, Mounis.

Replacements: Henderson, Simon, Fakir, Paea.

Crusaders: Schifcofske; Reardon, Martin, Mellars, Kear; Witt, Tansey; Bryant, Withers, Flower, Cahill, Chan, Winternstein.

Replacements: Sammut, O'Hara, James, White.

Attendance: 7,125.

Referee: Steve Ganson (St Helens).

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