Laurent Frayssinous called for calm following this latest eye-catching victory for his Catalans side, but on this form they are becoming increasingly hard to ignore.
These are heady days for the men from Perpignan: five successive wins for the first time since 2008 and their away form – their longstanding achilles heel – also showing signs of encouragement, with this their fourth win in a row in England, and arguably their most impressive.
The Dragons led 28-0 at half-time and the result was sealed from that point, yet Frayssinous insisted there was still plenty of rugby to be played in 2016.
“We’ve never been worried about what people think,” he said. “We’ve got a quality team but we just want to focus on working hard and improving our consistency, but it’s pleasing to be travelling home with plenty of smiles and points.”
Two Englishmen played pivotal roles in laying the platform for the French club’s victory. Richie Myler was scintillating at the heart of their attack, the former Warrington half-back showed further signs of how the move to Perpignan has helped him discover perhaps the best form of his career to date, with Frayssinous saying afterwards: “I hope the England selectors are watching him.”
Myler played a key role in the two tries for the former Huddersfield winger Jodie Broughton, before helping to lay on scores for Vincent Duport, Grégory Mounis and Krisnan Inu, all of which involved the kind of skill and composure not seen from the Dragons on these shores in recent years.
Myler got a deserved try eight minutes after the interval following some impressive footwork close to the line before the evening’s pantomime villain, the one-time Hull KR forward Willie Mason, charged over for the Dragons’ seventh try to round off another impressive night’s work for Catalans.
Renewed optimism had filled the air at Hull KR following victory against Leeds, but even James Webster admitted afterwards he could do nothing but marvel at the Dragons’ performance after this defeat, which leaves them in the competition’s bottom four.
“That was the best performance from a Super League side this year,” Webster said. “We’ve got to hold our hands up and say we weren’t good enough.”
Hull KR Cockayne; Sio, Minns, Thornley, Dixon; Blair, Marsh; Mulhern, Lawler, Tilse, Clarkson, Greenwood, Allgood. Interchange Lunt, Green, Moran, Walker.
Catalans Dragons Gigot; Broughton, Inu, Duport, Richards; Bosc, Myler; Taylor, Pelissier, Mason, Stewart, Anderson, Baitieri. Interchange Bousquet, Mounis, Elima, Robin.
Tries Broughton 2, Duport, Inu, Mounis, Myler, Mason. Goals Richards 6.
Referee R Silverwood. Attendance 6,764.
