DRAGONMANIA

Drinkwater shocked by frenzied carnival atmosphere that inspired super Catalans to a place in the showpiece final

JOSH DRINKWATER knew exactly what it meant to Catalans fans to reach Old Trafford when he arrived at the ground on Thursday amid a scene of red and yellow smoke.

Dragons fans created a carnival atmosphere ahead of the sell-out semi-final with Hull KR, before watching their team book a Grand Final place with a 28-10 win.

For Aussie Drinkwater, in his second spell at the club having also played for London Broncos, Leigh and Hull KR in Super League, it was a new but exciting experience.

He said: “It was pretty crazy to be honest with all the smoke bombs at the stadium – you couldn’t see where you were going.

“The fans here are very passionate, they’re great to play in front of and are very loud.

“It probably exceeded my expectations. They created a great atmosphere and thankfully we got the job done.

“It was a great occasion, the club did a brilliant job of putting it on and the people of Perpignan really supported us.

“We rewarded them by doing our job and we’re off to Old Trafford.”

While passions were high off the field, on it the Dragons kept their cool, Drinkwater producing a crucial 80-metre interception try and assist to continue his influential campaign.

He said: “The reception when we got there was great, but the changing room when we got in was very relaxed.

“Everyone was nice and calm and we spoke about playing the game and not the occasion.

“We’ve got some pretty senior players here and a lot of us have played in big games before. I thought we handled that pretty well.

“I think when we look back and watch the video we didn’t play great, which I guess is a good thing – we still won not playing good footy.

“We know next week in the Grand Final we’re going to have to be a whole lot better.

“But it’s a good sign when you win and don’t play great in a semi-final, it gives you confidence for next week.”

Drinkwater will again distance himself from any prematch hype in Perpignan this week ahead of Saturday’s season decider.

He added: “I don’t read the newspapers or listen to the news because I don’t understand that much. It helps me blank it all out which probably helped me a bit this week.

“I’m in my own little world, I’ve no idea what people are saying about me, don’t read the paper or anything. I’m in my own little bubble here and it’s been good.”