Micky McIlorum: Catalans cup win up there with anything I’ve done

Micky McIlorum said his Challenge Cup win with Catalans ranks as high as any of his career achievements.

The 30-year-old helped the Dragons become the first ever non-British team to win the Challenge Cup on Saturday as they beat Warrington Wolves 20-14 at Wembley.

McIlorum won two Super League titles and two Challenge Cups in his time at Wigan Warriors, and he says the win with Catalans ranks just as high as them.

He said: “To be the first team to win something for this club is a massive achievement and is ranked up there with anything I’ve ever done.

“To be the first foreign team in over 100 years to win the Challenge Cup is just fantastic.

“It has sunk in a bit now but I think it is going to sink in more when we’ve spent a bit of time back in France with our family, friends and the fans.”

Catalans were 14-6 ahead at the break and Warrington fought back in the second half but the Dragons did just enough to keep the Wolves at bay.

McIlorum heaped praise on Steve McNamara’s team for hanging in there.

The Ireland star added: “We had to dig deep in the last 20 minutes, we kept coughing the ball up and I was a bit worried they would get a try and level it.

“But fortunately, we dug deep and got the win. It was a great start though, I thought we controlled the game really well. We eased off a little bit and you can’t do that against Warrington due to the calibre of players they’ve got.

“Our poor start to the season brought us all together and when the game gets tough, I thought of how tough it was before and we really worked for each other.”