Castleford Tigers came from 14-0 down to overcome Catalans Dragons 43-26 and reclaim top spot in the Betfred Super League.
The Tigers appeared to be suffering from a hangover from their surprise 13-12 defeat at Salford Red Devils after allowing their visitors to run in tries from Iain Thornley and Richie Myler in the first 10 minutes, with Luke Walsh converting both and adding a penalty.
But Zak Hardaker went over direct from a scrum heel for the first of Castleford’s seven tries, with Grant Millington, an acrobatic Joel Monaghan and Greg Eden all crossing the whitewash to turn the match on its head as the hosts went in at half-time 22-14 ahead.
The Dragons scored first in the second half through substitute forward Louis Anderson, but it was largely one-way traffic thereafter, with Junior Moors strolling through the visitors’ defence in alarmingly comfortable fashion before Michael Shenton finished off a glorious move.
Luke Gale, who finished the game with a 15-point haul, slotted a drop goal to keep the scoreboard ticking over until Eden jinked his way over for his second try and, leading 43-20, it was the signal for coach Daryl Powell to re-introduce Rangi Chase for his first game back since serving a suspension for a breach of discipline.
Catalans finished a well-beaten team but they had the consolation of scoring the final try through winger Vincent Duport on his 150th appearance, with Walsh taking his goal tally to five from five attempts.
Castleford coach Daryl Powell said: “I think there were some outstanding things in our game. Obviously to be 14-0 down, you are under pressure.
“The Catalans are a big physical team and to get away to a start like that it gave them a real foothold in the game. So I was pleased we managed a response. At times we look unbelievably difficult to hold, so there are lots of positives for us. Overall we needed to win the game and it gets us back into a good position.”
Opposite number Laurent Frayssinous said: “We made a great start with the ball, but obviously our defence was not good enough. We imposed a lot of early pressure and scored some tries, but, on the back of that, we couldn’t defend and it’s frustrating to concede so many points.”