Mike Rush agrees Cardace 'no try' should have stood

St Helens coach Mike Rush admitted had roles been reversed and Damien Cardace’s try been disallowed for St Helens, he would be furious.

The Saints coach admitted he thought Cardace’s try should have stood, but Saints did not have all the refereeing decisions go their own way. Tony Puletua was sent off for a shoulder charge to the head of Gregory Mounis.

Rush said: “I would have had complaints if that no try decision had gone against us. But I'm not going to moan too much, because the decision has gone our way.

“There were some contentious calls throughout the game and I'm sure both coaches will feel aggrieved. Puletua's tackle looked ok from where we were sitting, but we'll wait until we see the video.”

Rush was overcome with emotion as the final hooter signalled a 20-15 win in the south of France, understanding how important the win was in Perpignan over the Dragons.

He said: “It was nice for us to get a win after we threw away two points at home against Catalan. We might not have been in our best form but we're picking up some points.

“It is always tough to come away from home and we had a long day travelling on Thursday and a long day waiting for the 9pm local kick off time too. We showed courage, determination and a lot of heart.

“It would have been heartbreaking to come away with nothing with the amount of effort we put in.”