Super League Week 3 Sat 28th Feb

Catalans Dragons 38-18 Warrington Wolves

Catalan Dragons smashed Warrington Wolves to win their second game of the season and consign the visitors to their first defeat.

The French side got the first try after Chris Hill gave away a penalty and Catalan took advantage, Willie Tonga crossing the line after a simple move. Scott Dureau adding the extras.

Catalan continued to push forward and pressure Warrington, Todd Carney looking especially dangerous with both ball in hand and off the boot.

Wolves tried to hit back and thought they had scored after Hill wriggled over the line, but he was deemed held up. Catalan got their second though after good hands and a change of direction found Michael Oldfield out wide to score. Dureau adding the extra two.

Vincent Duport then crossed five minutes later off an overlap, Dureau once again hitting the conversion. Duport could have had a second but Tonga passed the ball straight into touch with the tryline glaring.

Warrington picked up their first try after the break, Michael Monaghan picking up a loose ball to score. Gareth O'Brien added the extra two before a second try quickly followed, Gary Wheeler crossing the whitewash with O'Brien again adding the extras.

Dureau knocked over a penalty to stretch the Dragon's lead before they crossed the line for their fourth try, Zeb Taia scoring after a counterattack went the length of the field. Carney then through a dummy to break and offload to Taia to score two in as many minutes. Dureau converting both.

Joe Philbin got a consolation try for Wolves before Oldfield added his second, collecting a cross-field kick to dot down out wide. Dureau coverting.

Warrington pushed forward looking for another try but to no avail. The match finishing 38-18 in favour of the home team.

Salford 32-28 Hull FC

Salford Red Devils have claimed a thrilling win at home to Hull FC 32-28, in the Super League tonight.

The home side made a blistering start and scored two tries in the opening six minutes through winger Niall Evalds and scrum-half Theo Fages.

Hull FC showed guts to pull a try back straight away through Jordan Rankin, but the Red Devils extended their lead as Evalds darted down the wing to score his second.

Hull fought back to take the lead as Jordan Thompson and Setaimata Sa scored tries either side of half time, but that only forced Salford to attack with renewed vigour as they tried to regain the lead.

Seven minutes after Sa scored for Hull, Josh Griffin put his side ahead with their fourth try, before he received a fine pass from Rongi Chase to score again three minutes later.

Thompson added his second for Hull with seven minutes remaining, before Junior Sao scored for Salford after more good work from Chase.

Tom Lineham gave Hull hope of a victory late on, as he squeezed over in the corner but they ran out of time shortly after.

RBS 6 Nations Week 3 SCO 19-22 ITA & FRA 13-20 WAL

Scotland 19-22 Italy

Italy scored a penalty try with just seconds remaining to clinch a 22-19 win over Scotland in the Six Nations at Murrayfield this afternoon.

The home side made a strong start to the match, with Mark Bennett intercepting a pass intended for Sergio Parisse to dive over for the opening try.

Italy were soon back off the mark though as Joshua Furno forced his way over following a maul, while Giovanbattista Venditti chased down a Kelly Haimona kick just before the break.

However, a three first-half penalties from Greig Laidlaw ensured that Scotland held a narrow lead at the end of the first 40 minutes.

Scotland dominated the possession at the start of the second half, but could not find a way through for their second try of the match, forcing Laidlaw to settle for three points.

The visitors, who had previously won just once away from home in the Six Nations, pushed hard for a late try, and they were awarded one when Hamish Brown was penalised for dragging down, earning himself a yellow card and handing Italy the five points to take the victory.

France 13-20 Wales

Dan Biggar's second-half try helped Wales to a 20-13 victory over France in Paris, to keep their hopes of winning the Six Nations alive.

Leigh Halfpenny kicked the 2013 champions into a 6-3 lead as the Welsh tried to control possession and the hosts struggled to threaten in attack.

France, who were beaten by Ireland a fortnight ago, thought they had taken the lead when winger Yoann Hugetcrossed over in the corner, but final pass was adjudged to be forward.

Wales continued to enjoy possession, but the home side had chances to edge in front as both fly-half Camille Lopez and Clermont Auvergne teammate Morgan Parra missed penalties either side of half-time.

Midway through the second half, Wales scored the crucial try after scrum-half Rhys Webb found a gap before forward Dan Lydiate's offload presented Biggar with the chance to score in the corner.

France hit back full-back Brice Dulin touched down to reduce to arrears as Philippe Saint-Andre's team tried to produce a late fightback.

However, weaknesses in the French scrum led to another Halfpenny penalty and a famous Welsh victory in Paris.

Super League 2015 Week 3 Fri 27th Feb

St Helens 21-14 Castleford

St Helens have maintained their unbeaten start to the Super League season with a 21-14 win over Castleford Tigers at Langtree Park this evening.

The defending champions were ahead just 12 minutes in when Adam Swift found himself in space out wide, leaving him to sprint for the line.

The visitors pushed to get back into the tie, but had two tries ruled out on review before Tommy Makinsondoubled the Saints' advantage.

A mis-timed kick from Justin Carney was intercepted by Josh Jones at the start of the second half to hand the home side their third try.

However, Carney quickly made amends, creating two scores for himself to get the Tigers back in to the match with half an hour to play.

St Helens were reduced to 12 men for a time when Kyle Amor was sent to the sin bin for a rough tackle, but the visitors could not add to their score.

Mark Percival put the win beyond doubt for a fourth try for the hosts before Jordan Tansey made the scoreline more respectable for Castleford late on.

The result leaves the hosts with three wins from three matches this season, while Castleford are still looking for their first victory of the campaign.

Super League 2015 Week 3 Leeds 28-24 Huddersfield

Leeds 28-24 Huddersfield

The Leeds Rhinos continued their impressive start to the Super League season with a slender 28-24 victory over the Huddersfield Giants this evening.

The home side went in front early on thanks to some clever work from Carl Ablett, before Adam Cuthbertson notched Leeds' second try in the 23rd minute to push the hosts further in front at 12-0.

Jamie Ellis returned for Huddersfield in the 32nd minute to claw some points back after Kevin Sinfield had originally helped to kick Leeds further into the lead.

The Giants gave themselves a route back into the game just before the break thanks to Joe Wardle, who touched down to leave the scores at 18-12 going into the interval.

Tom Briscoe was on the mark straight after half time as he put Leeds further in front, but the Giants weren't done yet as some neat offensive play from Kyle Wood and Brett Ferres put the away side into a 24-22 advantage with just over 10 minutes to go.

Unfortunately for Huddersfield, they had not counted on the heroics of Paul Aiton, who touched down in the 74th minute to build on good work laid down by Sinfield to give Leeds a slender comeback win.

World Club Challenge Match 2

Wigan Warriors 12-14 Brisbane Broncos AET

Corey Parker kicked an extra-time penalty to give theBrisbane Broncos a 14-12 win over Wigan Warriors, in the second match of the 2015 World Club Series tonight.

It took the Australian side just seven minutes to score the opening try, as hooker Andrew McCullough crashed over unchallenged from close-range, after a Joe Burgess error.

Wigan hit back through Liam Farrell, who latched onto the end of a George Williams grubba kick to touch the ball down, which left the score at 6-6 at half time.

After the break, the Broncos regained the lead when Lachlan Maranta dived over in the corner, as a neat move found him on the wing.

Parker missed the conversion, but he slotted over a penalty just 11 minutes later to establish a six point lead.

The Warriors pushed hard in the final few minutes and they took advantage of a Broncos error, as Burgess ran the length of the field, swapped passes with Williams, and scored his side's second try.

Matty Smith converted which sent the game into extra time, with the next score winning the match.

Both teams missed drop-goal attempts, before Parker successfully converted the penalty in the 90th minute.

World Club Challenge Series Match 1

Warrington Wolves 12-18 St George Illawarra Dragons

St George Illawarra Dragons survived a second half comeback from Warrington Wolves to clinch an 18-12 win in the World Club Series this evening.

Tyson Frizell put the visitors ahead just two minutes into the tie with a quick break from just inside Warrington territory, while Joel Thompson added a second inside the opening 20 minutes.

Ryan Atkins and Gareth O'Brien got the Wolves back into the tie before the break, but the latter missed the conversion on the second try to leave the hosts two points back at the interval.

Another kick from O'Brien leveled the scores early in the second half, but the visitors were soon ahead again when Josh Dugan pounced on a forward kick.

Joel Monaghan came close to an equalising try in the final minutes, but he juggled the pass before dropping the ball, leaving the hosts just short.

Super League 2015 Week 2 Sun 15th Feb

Wakefield 44-24 Hull KR


Wakefield Trinity Wildcats have stormed to a 44-24 win against Hull Kingston Rovers in this afternoon's Super League clash at Belle Vue.


The visitors registered the first points of the match when Craig Hall allowed an Albert Kelly kick to bounce before the latter charged in and crossed over, with Josh Mantellato notching up the subsequent conversion.


Wildcats got themselves level soon afterwards when Matty Ashhurst pounced on a Paul McShane kick for a try and Hall then converted.


Tyrone McCarthy got Hull back in front despite Chris Riley's best efforts, but two quickfire Jacob Miller tries enabled the hosts to take a 16-12 lead in at the break.

Following the restart, Wakefield captain Danny Kirmond collected a pass from Tim Smith before sneaking through a gap in the opposition defence and crossing over.


However, Rovers came back within six points of the hosts as Ken Sio walked the ball over the line and Mantellato converted.


Riley then helped Wakefield surge back in front with a swift hat-trick of tries for a seemingly insurmountable 20-point lead.


Despite Ryan Bailey bundling over for the visitors, Miller became the second Wildcats player to secure a hat-trick of tries on the day at the death.

RBS 6 Nations Week 2 SCO 23-26 WAL

SCO 23-26 WAL


Wales have bounced back from their opening-game disappointment to pick up their first win of this year's Six Nations championship against Scotland, holding on to come out on top 26-23 at Murrayfield.


The Red Dragons have dominated this fixture in recent years, winning every meeting between the two since 2007, and it was they who got off the mark quickest in Edinburgh.


Scotland were guilty of giving away a number of early penalties, and they were duly punished when the ever-reliable Leigh Halfpenny split the sticks to get his side up and running on seven minutes.

That lead did not last long, however, with Scotland opening the try-count courtesy of Stuart Hogg who managed to run through unchecked after a Wales move broke down.


Grieg Laidlwaw converted from the follow-up, and the Gloucester man added a further three points from a pen soon after to swing the game completely.


It was to be Warren Gatland's charges who dug deepest to wrestle control before the interval, though, adding four more points thanks to the strong kicking of Halfpenny, and there was to be more bad news for Scotland when Finn Russell's clumsy challenge saw him shown a yellow.


Wales, still reeling from last weekend's defeat at home against arch-rivals England, made the most of the man advantage with Rhys Webb crossing over on the back of a good team move.


Laidlaw's second pen of the evening reduced the arrears somewhat as Scotland began to register their comeback in the early stages of the second half.


Neither side could find a way through to add the big points from a try, though, and it was a case of keeping the scores ticking along as both Halfpenny and Laidlaw added further pens.


Then, with 15 minutes left to play, Jonathan Davies was picked out by Dan Biggar to cross over the whitewash to give Wales the breathing space that they needed for the first time.

It was a case of the visitors remaining resilient in the final stages of the contest and halting Scotland from advancing forward, but Vern Cotter's men did appear to have a lifeline when Mark Bennett touched down. But a knock-on in the build-up to the try saw it cruelly ruled out by the match official, denting Scottish hopes further.


There was still time for Jim Hamilton to add a late consolation for Scotland, but it proved to be just that as time was against them meaning that they remain without a win from their opening two games.

RBS 6 Nations Week 2 ENG 47-17 ITA & IRE 18-11 FRA

ENG 47-17 ITA


England bounced back from going a try down inside the opening five minutes to comfortably beat Italy 47-17 in their Six Nations clash at Twickenham this afternoon.


Stuart Lancaster had named an unchanged side for the visit of the Italians, who were aiming to respond after last weekend's defeat at the hands of Ireland.


Despite England enjoying plenty of early possession, it was the away side who struck first blood when Luca Morisi teed up captain Sergio Parisse who crashed over after Italy had stolen an England lineout deep in their own territory.

Kelly Haimona pushed the conversion attempt wide, before the game was interrupted following a nasty clash of heads between Mike Brown and Andrea Masi.


It was the England man who came off worse, forced to leave the game in a neck brace and prompting a reshuffle as Billy Twelvetrees came on at centre and Jonathan Joseph was moved to the wing.


A misfiring England were finally on the scoreboard on 20 minutes when George Ford stroked home a penalty after Haimona had been penalised for not rolling away.


Ford then drew a huge cheer from the Twickenham crowd when he elected to kick for touch rather than the posts with another mid-range penalty two minutes later.


From the resulting set piece Billy Vunipola was driven into the corner by James Haskell, with the try awarded after consultation with the TMO.


Joseph skipped free of the Italy line to extend England's lead four minutes later as Lancaster's side recovered from their sluggish start, but Italy remained within touching distance.


A simple Ford penalty extended England's lead at the start of the second half, before Morisi broke the tackles of Dave Attwood and Haskell to go over, though Haimona's missed conversion kept the visitors eight points behind their opponents.


Quick thinking from Ben Youngs punished Haimona's carelessness and put England further ahead when he took a quick tap and go penalty and went over under the posts.


It was the score that broke the Italian resistance and prompted a flurry of tries from Lancaster's men.


First Joseph's quick break took then him over for his second try of the afternoon before replacement Danny Cipriani touched down just a minute after being introduced for Ford.


A late try from the impressive Morisi provided his side with some consolation, but England deserved their win despite an up and down performance.



IRE 18-11 FRA


Defending champions Ireland have kept up their winning start to the Six Nations with a narrow 18-11 victory over France in Dublin.


Jonathan Sexton kicked over four penalties for the hosts in a cagey first half, while Camille Lopez scored six points for France as Ireland went in 12-6 ahead at the break.


Penalties from Ian Madigan and Sexton gave the home side some breathing space at the start of the second period, but a try from Romain Taofifenua with nine minutes left set up a nervy finish.


However, France's task was made more difficult when Lopez missed the resulting conversion.


Les Bleus fought doggedly during the final stages in an attempt to take something from the game, only for a disciplined Ireland to hold on for the vital win.

Super League Week 2 Saturday 14th Feb

Catalans Dragons 13-12 Castleford


Catalans Dragons opened their Super League account with dramatic 13-12 win over Castleford Tigers.


Cas, who lost their local derby with Wakefield Trinity Wildcats last weekend, made a bright start in Perpignan and were awarded for their industry when Luke Gale cross-field kick was taken by Justin Carney on the run and the winger touched down for his 47th try in 46 games.


The hosts, who themselves were beaten by defending champions St Helens last time out, thought that they scored soon after when forward Zeb Taia bulldozed his way to the in-goal area, but as he touched down, the video referee adjudged that the Dragons player was held up.

Daryl Powell's men almost scored another try when Gale unleashed another spiralling kick, which Denny Solomona rose highest to collect only for the touch judge to penalise the winger for offside.


A fiery encounter reached boiling point late in first half then Olivier Elima and Eloi Pelissier were yellow carded and Cas's Jake Webster was also sin-binned following a 26-man melee.


The video ref was called into action twice when Denny Solomona collected a kick off, which didn't go the full 10 metres and then overturned Scott Dureau inception score when the Catalans back put a foot in touch.


The Dragons wouldn't be denied by the TMO and got back on level terms when full back Morgan Escare scored early in the second period, to the delight of the majority inside the Stade Gilbert Brutus.


After Dureau stroked another penalty between the posts, Catalans opened up a six-point lead when Elliott Whitehead went over the whitewash with 15 minutes remaining.


The home side had opportunities to seal victory before Jordan Tansey's converted brought the Tigers back on terms.


However, Dureau restored Catalans lead with a late drop goal, which gave the hosts their maiden victory of the 2015 season.

Super League 2015 Week 2 Thurs 12th & Fri 13th Feb

Salford Red Devils 6-52 St Helens


St Helens have continued their 100% start to the defence of their Super League crown with a convincing 52-6 victory over Salford Red Devils this evening.


The visitors ran in 10 tries overall, with Mark Percival, Joe Greenwood and Jordan Turner each grabbing braces in the resounding win.


It was hosting Salford that had the better of the opening exchanges, but Saints were the first to register on the scoreboard as Adam Swift broke through before Percival went over on the 10-minute mark.

Turner and Greenwood then touched down within five minutes of each other to extend the lead further, while Percival added his first successful conversion of the night to open up a 14-point gap.


Salford came up with a response shortly before the half-hour mark, but Ben Jones-Bishop's solo effort was to prove a false dawn for hopes of a comeback against the reigning champions.


Indeed, the Saints had restored their 14-point advantage before half time as Luke Thompson powered over the line, while Tom Makinson picked up where they left off at the start of the second half with an early score to make it 24-6.


Salford thought that they had touched down for their second try of the evening only to be denied by the video ref, who awarded Percival a try just minutes later following a comedy of errors from Jon Wilkin's kick.


Wilkin was again involved as he sent Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook in for his side's seventh try of the evening, and things got even tougher for the hosts just a minute later as Gareth Hock was sent to the sin bin.


The Saints didn't take long to make the most of their numerical advantage, with Greenwood and Turner both going over for their second of the match during Hock's time off the field.


Andre Savelio took his side over the 50-point mark late on with their 10th try of the match following Percival's kick, capping off a commanding performance from St Helens and leaving Salford still winless in the new season.






Hull FC 6-7 Warrington Wolves


Warrington Wolves have scraped to a narrow 7-6 win away at Hull FC in the Super League.


Warrington scored their only try in the 26th minute when hooker Darryl Clark collected an offload to score under the posts, before they extended their lead late in the half when Gareth O'Brien kicked a clever drop goal to give them a seven point lead at the break.


Hull got themselves back into the match in the second half as winger Tom Lineham latched on to the end of a Marc Sneyd kick to cross the line in the corner.


However, their late pressure didn't pay off as Warrington secured a one-point win.

Leeds Rhinos 38-6 Widnes Vikings

Leeds Rhinos continued their good start to the new Super League season, as they beat Widnes Vikings 38-6 tonight.


Leeds scored the opening try after 16 minutes, when Tom Briscoe broke forward and set up Zak Hardaker to score, before Widnes hit back immediately through Manase Manuokafoa.


After half-time Leeds ran riot as Ryan Hall put them ahead by scoring a try in the corner, Adam Cuthbertson stretched over just ten minutes after.


Briscoe sparked a flurry of tries for Leeds late on, as he dashed 60 metres to score his side's fourth, before Danny McGuire, Kallum Watkins and Kevin Sinfield also scored.

Wigan Warriors 24-16 Huddersfield

Wigan Warriors staged a late comeback to beat Huddersfield Giants 24-16 in the Super League tonight.


The visitors took an early lead when Anthony Mullally scored a try after just seven minutes, but Wigan hit back quickly through Joel Tompkins.


John Bateman put Wigan ahead shortly after, but Jamie Ellis regained the lead for the Giants just two minutes later, before Aaron Murphy latched onto a grubber kick to score Huddersfield's third try shortly before half time.


However, Wigan rallied in the second half and Tompkins scored his second try in the 51st minute to get the gap down to just two points.


Huddersfield failed to hold on to their slender lead, as Michael McIlorum put Wigan ahead in the 69th minute, and the tie was finished by 19-year-old Ryan Sutton four minutes later.

Super League 2015 Week 1 Sunday 8th Feb

Huddersfield 0-19 Hull FC


Hull FC have kicked off their Super League campaign with a thumping 19-0 victory away at Huddersfield Giants.


The Black & Whites were ahead inside 21 minutes courtesy of Fetuli Talanoa's try, which came about following some good work by Marc Sneyd to gain a yard of space and break away.


Sneyd could not quite add the extras from the follow up, although the former Salford Red Devils man did find the sticks on the brink of half time with a successfully converted penalty.

A storming 12-minute spell in the second half saw Hull run away with the game as first Jamie Shaul found the whitewash on the back of Sneyd's grubber kick, before the heavily-involved Sneyd bent the ball over to add to the scoring.


That combination worked again moments later with Shaul using his quick feet to make something out of nothing, crossing over and allowing his teammate to kick the extras.


Sneyd rounded off an impressive day for both him and his side by knocking over a drop kick with more than 15 minutes still to play, yet that proved to be the end of the scoring at the John Smith's Stadium.

Hull KR 30-40 Leeds Rhinos


Leeds Rhinos are up and running in this season's Super League with an opening-weekend victory over Hull Kingston Rovers.


The Loiners came out on top 40-30 at Craven Park in a thrilling battle which saw the lead swing both ways in a 12-try contest.


Tom Briscoe opened the scoring inside the opening minute for the Rhinos after being picked out by Kallum Watkins, although in a sign of things to come Hull hit back almost immediately through Albert Kelly touching down.

Kingston Rovers scored again on nine minutes when Mitch Allgood charged through, and things were soon even better for the hosts as Kelly added his second of the evening after collecting a grubber kick towards the goal line.


It was then Leeds's turn to pile on the points, first through Kevin Sinfield who touched down between the posts following a break down the middle, with Danny McGuire then opening his account for the campaign on the back of some good interplay from his teammates.


Sinfield converted for a second time to ensure that there was just two points in at as the first half drew towards a conclusion, but there was to be more excitement as Terry Campese charged down his own kick to add try number seven of the opening 40 minutes.


Things continued in much the same way following the restart, Kris Welham intercepting the ball and charging 70m to add to the scoring and extend the Robins' lead.


But from that point on it was all about Brian McDermott's men as McGuire and Watkins crossed over, the latter producing a brilliant piece of centre play to help him through, while Zak Hardaker dramatically gave Leeds the advantage.


Hull pushed to find a response, but it was to be the Rhinos' day thanks to McGuire opening up the opposition defence and playing in replacement Brad Singleton to round off the scoring on a day of high drama.

Castleford 22-24 Wakefield


Wakefield Trinity Wildcats have battled back from behind to kick off their Super League season with an impressive 24-22 victory over Castleford Tigers at Wheldon Road.


The hosts made a strong start to the contest thanks to two early tries from Denny Solomona on his full Cas debut, the second of which came after a fine piece of team play between Junior Moors and early replacement Jake Webster to link up with the winger who did the rest.


Paul McShane did manage to pull back some points when he found the whitewash on 26 minutes, but Luke Gale ensured that it was Castleford who went into the break with a hefty lead after selling the opposition a dummy and adding a debut try of his own.

It looked to be a straightforward victory for the Wildcats when Justin Carney added try number four of the evening midway through the second half, but that sparked a revival from the Tigers on a day of comebacks and high drama in the Super League.


Pita Godinet kicked things off by touching down on 65 minutes, and when Ali Lauitiiti added his name to the scoresheet it meant that there were just four points separating the teams heading into the dying stages.


Danny Washbrook proved to be the Tigers' hero, diving over under posts and paving the way for Craig Hall to add the extras for a fourth time in the game to salvage the slenderest of wins.

Super League 2015 Week 1 Warrington 22-8 Salford

Warrington Wolves 22-8 Salford


Warrington Wolves have started their Super League campaign with a comfortable 22-8 win over Salford Red Devils in their first match of the new season this afternoon.


The sides remained level for the opening 25 minutes, but Richie Myler made the most of a strong spell of possession to open the scoring for the hosts.


Mickey Higham came off the bench to double Warrington's advantage just three minutes later, leaving the Wolves 12 points up at the break.


Rhys Evans extended Warrington's lead further early in the second half before Ben Jones-Bishop got Salford off the mark with a dive over in the corner after a quick break.


Evans put the win beyond doubt with his second of the afternoon 10 minutes from full time, sprinting down the wing, while Jones-Bishop completed his brace at the death.

RBS Six Nations Week 1 ITA 3-26 IRE & FRA 15-8 SCO

ITA 3-26 IRE


Ireland scored two tries in a minute to set up a comfortable 26-3 win over Italy in their opening fixture in this season's Six Nations championship.


The home side defended hard to ensure that the defending champions did not get an early try on the board, but Ian Keatley managed to open up a nine-point lead with three penalties.

Kelly Haimona got Italy off the mark just before the break though, converting a penalty after an Ireland infringement just ahead of half time.


Chances continued to remain at a premium after the restart, but Conor Murray finally managed to add the first try of the match, scooping the ball up from a lineout to pile over.


Ireland needed just a minute to add their second as Tommy O'Donnell made the most of Leonardo Ghiraldini being sent to the sin bin to burst through a gap.



FRA 15-8 SCO


France have defeated Scotland in their opening game of the Six Nations championship, edging the visitors by 15-8.


All of France's points came through penalties and struggled at times to penetrate the Scottish defence.


Dougie Fife scored the game's only try on the stroke of half time, keeping the scores close at 9-8.

Greig Laidlaw failed to score the conversion from a tight angle for the visitors, which would of levelled the scores.


However, France continued to press and added their final two penalties in the second half.


The hosts had the chance to score a try of their own, as Yoan Huget had one person to beat after a powerful run from the halfway line, only to be tackled by Scotland's last man, Mark Bennett.


France saw out the remaining minutes to win their opening fixture.

RBS Six Nations 2015 Wales 16-21 England

WAL 16-21 ENG

Wales

Try: Webb

Con: Halfpenny

Pens: Halfpenny (2)

Drop goal: Biggar

England

Tries: Watson, Joseph

Con: Ford

Pens: Ford (3)

England began their Six Nations campaign with a 21-16 victory over Wales in Cardiff.


Kickoff at a raucous Millennium Stadium was delayed by several minutes as the two teams stood off in their respective tunnels, refusing to enter the arena first.


With some encouragement from the officials, England blinked first and they were behind within two minutes as Leigh Halfpenny kicked successfully from 40 yards following Jonny May's concession of a penalty.

The Welsh were soon 10-0 up thanks to a Halfpenny-converted try that saw Taulupe Faletau pluck the ball from out the back of a collapsing scrum and offload for scrum-half Rhys Webb to touch down.


England crossed over themselves on 14 minutes when Anthony Watson scooped up Mike Brown's clever grubber kick to go over out wide, although George Ford hit the post when attempting the extras.


Ford would add a penalty later in the half to cancel out an effort from distance by Halfpenny, whose surprising penalty miss on 34 minutes was made up for by Dan Biggar's drop goal on the stroke of the break.

The home side's eight-point advantage had been cut to one with six minutes of the restart. Jonathan Joseph showed smart footwork and handling to score a try which was converted by man-of-the-match Ford.


Wasps forward James Haskell was another of Lancaster's star performers and he was only denied England's third try when a number of Wales players forced him to run into the post and he could not ground the ball.


Alex Cuthbert was sent to the sin-bin for his part in the incident, and Ford kicked the simple penalty from in front of the posts to put the visitors ahead for the first time in the contest at 18-16.

England had the man advantage and all of the significant territory by this point and twice came close to killing Wales off, with Luther Burrell driving through only to force Brown into knocking on with a poor pass.


Dave Atwood then did touch the ball down for what he thought was England's third try, only for the officials to disallow the effort for substitute Nick Easter, making his first international appearance since 2011, crossing in the build-up.


That left Wales still within a Halfpenny penalty of victory as the game entered the final four minutes, but it was England kicker Ford who would have the final say as he kept his nerve to secure his side a five-point win.

Super League 2015 Week 1 St Helens 18-7 Catalan

St Helens 18

Tries: Vea, Turner, Savelio, Makinson Goals: Makinson

Catalans Dragons 7

Tries: Pelissier Goals: Bosc Drops: Bosc Champions St Helens made a winning start to their Super League title defence in a bruising, fiery home victory against Catalans Dragons. It also marked a successful start to coach Keiron Cunningham's tenure, having replaced the departed Nathan Brown for the 2015 campaign. Saints trailed 7-6 at half time after Eloi Pelissier's try and a Thomas Bosc drop cancelled out Atelea Vea's score. Jordan Turner, Andre Savelio and Tommy Makinson tries sealed Saints' win. The home side had thrashed Catalans on this ground in the play-off semi-finals last season but found a much fresher Catalans harder to beat, despite early setbacks for the visitors. Vea polished off a slick left-to-right move at the other end for Saints but Catalans did claw ahead when Pelissier sneaked over from close-in after Greg Richards was sent to the sin-bin on the back of a string of penalties, and Bosc landed a late drop goal. However Saints showed their champion spirit in the second period with Turner's try that owed much to Jonny Lomax's well-timed pass, and then survived a ruled-out Pelissier score shortly after. Adam Swift had a second try disallowed by the referee, after a similarly ruled-out score in the first period. Catalans' Michael Oldfield was sin-binned after he denied Lomax a certain score, but Savelio crossed, and another sliding move got Makinson in for his first of the campaign as tempers flared late on.

Super League 2015 Week 1 Widnes 22-22 Wigan

Widnes Vikings 22-22 Wigan Warriors


The new Super League season got off to a thrilling start this evening as 14-man Widnes Vikings came from behind to draw 22-22 with Wigan Warriors.


Last season's Grand Final runners-up were ahead within eight minutes when Joel Tomkins went over in the corner for the opening try of the new campaign, although Matty Smith was unable to add the extras.


Widnes almost responded shortly afterwards, but Joe Burgess just about caught Stefan Marsh following a 70-yard chase to deny the Vikings centre.

The video ref then also prevented the hosts from getting on the board before John Bateman and Matty Bowen combined to set up Anthony Gelling, who touched down for Wigan's second try of the night.


The Vikings were left with an uphill battle a little more than a quarter into the game when Josh Charnley was caught with a very high tackle by Patrick Ah Van, who was shown a red card for the hit.


Wigan then extended their lead to 16 points as Gelling doubled his personal tally for the night on his 50th appearance following some more good work by Bateman in the build-up.


The Warriors gifted Widnes a route back into the match, however, as Burgess spilt the ball, allowing Joe Mellor to collect and race in for his side's first score of the game.


The Vikings then reduced the deficit to just four points as Mellor turned provider, sending a kick through for Rhys Hanbury to collect and score.


Tomkins thought he had scored his second try of the night, only to be denied by the TMO, but Wigan did touch down moments later as Burgess went over in the corner, while Smith added the extras.


There was still time for the hosts to launch another fightback, however, and Cameron Phelps got the wheels in motion by finishing off a slick move with just over 10 minutes remaining.


Crucially, Marsh missed the subsequent conversion, but Widnes set up a tense finale with their fourth try of the night in the 77th minute when Chris Dean barged over from close range, and this time Marsh was able to added the two points to level things up.


The teams were then levelled up numerically in the final minute of the game as Smith was sent to the sin bin for dissent, but neither side could find a winning score as the match ended all square.