Keighley Cougars 27 Toulouse 26

 Cougars chief Barry Eaton hailed the battling resolve of his players following a dramatic win against Toulouse.

A last-minute drop goal from Danny Jones clinched the points to keep Keighley’s battle for Championship survival alive.

Dewsbury’s win against Batley yesterday has made the task a seriously difficult one but Eaton insists his never-say-die side will continue fighting until the last.

He said: “It was a good result against Toulouse and we hung in there in a similar way to the win at Sheffield earlier in the season.

“We played well in the first half but handed it to them on a plate in the second half until we snatched it back late on.

“It was all or nothing because, if we’d lost, although it wouldn’t have been mathematically impossible to stay up, the task would have been massive. Now we’re still in there fighting.

“The last couple of months we have been playing well enough to be in there with a chance of winning any game.”

The Cougars had led 18-12 at the break thanks to two tries from Tom Burton and one from Brendon Rawlins, as well as three goals from the boot of Jones.

Toulouse had scored twice themselves through Tony Gigot and Sebastien Payan, both converted by Nathan Wynn, and then levelled five minutes after the break when Wynn scored and goaled himself.

The visitors forged ahead when Carlos Varela Mendes controversially touched down, Wynn converting, and the game seemed to be slipping away from Keighley when Jones was sin-binned for taking protests too far.

A Wynn penalty extended the lead but Jones’ return to the field of play sparked the Cougars’ charge.

James Hutchinson and Gavin Duffy both scored before Jones took charge late on, coolly slotting the decisive one-pointer.

“We did some dumb stuff at times but we hung in there,” said Eaton.

“Danny got himself sin-binned stupidly and that put us under real pressure so he owed it to the players.

“But when he came back on he showed how special a player he is.”