Matt Peet pays tribute to Steve McNamara as Wigan Warriors boss previews Catalans Dragons trip

McNamara’s reign as Super League’s longest-serving coach has come to an end, having been relieved of his duties as Catalans coach earlier this week, with All Out Rugby League breaking the news on Tuesday morning.

At the time of writing this article on Thursday morning, the French club are yet to put out an official statement regarding McNamara’s departure, but Dragons star Sam Tomkins confirmed the news when appearing on The Verdict on Sky Sports on Wednesday afternoon, with his older brother Joel taking charge on an interim basis, starting with Saturday’s game against his former club Wigan.

The Dragons prospered under McNamara, who was appointed head coach back in 2017, with 2025 marking his ninth season in charge of the club. McNamara guided Catalans to their first Challenge Cup win in 2018, the League Leaders’ Shield in 2021 and reached two Super League Grand Finals in 2021 and 2023.

But his final game in charge came in a 40-0 defeat to St Helens last Thursday, with the Perpignan club having won just five of their 11 games in Super League so far this season.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of Wigan’s trip to Catalans on Saturday, Warriors boss Peet spoke highly of McNamara, but didn’t want to say too much on the matter as the news hadn’t been confirmed at that point.

“I want to be mindful of how I word it, but I’ve got a massive amount of respect for Steve,” said Peet.

“(I respect) the job he did with England and the job he’s doing at Catalans, everything I hear about him as a fella, and most importantly, the way he has always been with me, very open and very supportive, I don’t want to speak too much about it because hopefully we’ll see him there on Saturday.”

Wigan head into Saturday’s match in the south of France having won their last six games, whilst Catalans have lost their last three in all competitions, but Peet is expecting the best version of the Dragons, regardless of their coaching change.

“Regardless of anything else, I think we’re going to get the best of them, and I think we generally do,” said Peet.

“I think they like welcoming us as a club and as a team, and there are a few Wiganers over there, we take a good following and there’s always a good atmosphere, so I’m sure they’ll be looking forward to that just as much as we are.

“I think they’d be hoping to be higher up the table so far this season with the quality they’ve got. I judge them on the best days they’ve had and the best moments they’ve had in games, and I think that’s what we’ve got to expect.

“The talent they’ve got on paper and the power they’ve got and the experience - Australia internationals, State of Origin players - so all I can say is we’re expecting probably a version better than what we’ve seen for a while. I do think we’ll get that, to be honest.”

The Warriors are making their first trip to the south of France this year, staying over from Thursday to Sunday, with Catalans away always being a fixture that the playing group relish and enjoy.

“It depends on what you mean by hostile, we love that,” Peet added. “I love going to Catalans, Saints, Leigh, Hull KR, it’s brilliant, it feels like a proper event, you’ve got plenty to overcome.

“I don’t know if hostile is the right word, maybe it is, but there is just an energy around the ground and the sound, sights and smells are obviously different to what you get in England, it’s fantastic and it’s a great arena for the sport, I think it suits rugby league down to the ground, it’s a unique environment for us, I love it.”