MATCH REPORT | LEEDS RHINOS 38-16 SALFORD RED DEVILS | FRIDAY 23RD JULY 2021

Despite a positive end to the game for Marshall’s men, Salford Red Devils fell to a 38-16 defeat away to Leeds Rhinos tonight in Round 15 of the Betfred Super League.

Three tries in the first forty from the hosts made it 20-0 at the break, and although the Red Devils responded in the second half, they could not quite hold off the Leeds attack.

Harry Newman was first on the scoreboard after seven minutes, going over in the left corner after some quick hands from Leeds’ left edge.

The hosts exploited Salford’s right edge again minutes later but this time it was Kruise Leeming who grounded the ball down the left.

Leeds received a penalty in the 23rd minute after Seb Ikahihifo was penalised for a dangerous tackle, and the Rhinos opted for the two – Rhyse Martin converting.

Leeming doubled his try tally just after the half-hour mark, strolling over behind the sticks.

Halftime: Leeds Rhinos 20-0 Salford Red Devils

Salford started the second forty a lot better than they started the first, getting themselves on the scoreboard in the 47th minute after Morgan Escare fed Ken Sio to dive over down the right wing.

Minutes later, poor discipline punished Salford again after Lolohea and Ikahihifo both were sin-binned.

The next ten minutes saw Callum Mclelland and King Vuniyayawa score for Leeds, before the Red Devils were back on the scoreboard once more.

Sio ran almost the entire length of the field but a pursuing wave of Leeds players meant he was forced to kick the ball into the direction of Lolohea, who was first to the loose ball to go over in the right corner.

Leeds captain Matt Prior scurried over the line to the left of the sticks in the 74th minute but it was Salford who scored the last try of the evening, Inu powering over. Richard Myler saw yellow with three minutes to go, but he and his teammates took the two points at the final hooter.

Fulltime: Leeds Rhinos 20-0 Salford Red Devils

Leeds Rhinos: Myler, Briscoe, Hurrell, Newman, Handley, Sutcliffe, Mclelland, Prior, Leeming, Vuniyayawa, Mellor, Martin, O’Connor, Dwyer, Briscoe, Donaldson, Smith, Agar.

Leeds tries: Newman, Leeming (2), Mclelland, Vuniyayawa, Prior

Leeds goals: Martin (6/7)

Salford Red Devils: Escare, Sio, Inu, Livett, Williams, Lolohea, Atkin, Mossop, Ackers, Ormondroyd, Wells, Pauli, Lannon, Hingano, Ikahihifo, Luckley, Roberts.

Salford tries: Sio, Lolohea, Inu

Salford goals: Inu (2/3)

Referee: Ben Thaler

Image credit: Steve McCormick

RED DEVILS IN DEPTH: CASTLEFORD V SALFORD | BETFRED CHALLENGE CUP QUARTER-FINAL

The pain of any loss in a sudden-death cup-tie is bad enough when one side has clearly been the better of the two, but when there is virtually nothing to choose between either of them then it is considerably worse for those on the losing side.  The parity of the two teams in Saturday’s Betfred Challenge Cup Quarter-Final was underlined by the 18-18 draw at the end of eighty minutes, before moving into Golden Point extra time.

To lose in those circumstances is really heart-breaking, and takes so much longer to get over than the average, run-of-the-mill, league game.  For the more neutral-minded general public, however, this must have been the most riveting and enjoyable spectacle – a game balanced on a knife edge, with cut and thrust, thrills and spills, fifty-fifty decisions, an abundance of ifs and buts, the momentum swaying from one side to the other, and the result in doubt right up to that Golden Point drop-goal, one and a half minutes into extra time.

It takes two good teams to make a really good game, but this was a great game which did rugby league a world of good being as it was on national television, and everyone connected with the club can take great pride in our team’s contribution to such an excellent evening’s entertainment.

Not that it looked that way in the early stages, with Salford players really struggling to cope with holding onto possession.  With the ball being lost in the earliest of stages in several sets, it did give the impression that they have not, as yet, fully come to terms with the new laws on ball stealing, which are significantly more relaxed.

As if to make up for this, it was Salford, who, on their first real foray into the Castleford twenty metre area, opened the scoring, when Harvey Livett continued his scoring run by falling onto a loose ball in Castleford’s in-goal area, after having contested against Derrell Olpherts for possession in the air, from Kevin Brown’s high kick.  He also continued his one hundred percent goal kicking record for not only this, but the two subsequent Red Devils’ tries.

Indeed. It was both teams’ ability to cross their opponents’ line, just when it looked as though that was not to happen, which kept spectators on the edge of their lounge seats.  Twice Salford took the lead in the first half only to fall behind for the first time, 18-12, midway through the second half.

It has often been said that it is not how you start it is how you finish, that really matters, and for those who witnessed the Salford onslaught on the Castleford line and defence, in the final quarter, will swear testimony.  The never-say-die Red Devils launched wave after wave of attacks which had the Tigers back-pedalling, and stretched to capacity.  The kicking game, which had been excellent throughout, was now matched by slick, confident handling skills.

Twice Salford players crossed the Tigers’ line, and a further twice kicks into the in-goal area were within inches of bringing about a score, only for each to be ruled out by the combined adjudications of the match officials.  Some will feel some sympathy for the Yorkshire side’s being twice reduced to twelve men, and very briefly eleven, but, in truth, it was as a result of the tremendous pressure under which their whole team was under, which led to their indiscretions.

It has been said that the end-of-set charge-down, from the speedy Paul McShane, was the determining factor in the whole game, but there was possibly an even greater one, which came forty-five seconds before the half-time hooter sounded.  Castleford crossed for an equalising six-pointer, against a tiring defence which failed to number up and snuff out the attack, unlike the magnificent efforts that had nullified the Tigers for so much of the game.

Had Salford retaken the field for the second forty, still six points in the lead, the likelihood of extra time might never have materialised.  And that tiring defence was, one must assume, as a consequence of all the extra tackling forced upon them, as a result of all the aforementioned lost possession, in that opening quarter.

If only the magnificent Lee Mossop’s seventy-ninth minute try had come several minutes earlier by means of one of those near misses, there would have been enough time for the momentum, which they had generated, to take them over for a winning score before the final hooter.  As it was, the break in play, prior to the onset of extra time, served to bring some respite to the beleaguered Castleford side, affording them the opportunity to regroup and also retake the field with a full complement, including the deadly kicking boot of Gareth O’Brien.

It was not to be, sadly, but knowledge of all the neutrals whom they must surely have won round with such a spirited, dedicated, and enthusiastic performance, will enable all Salford supporters to hold their heads high and celebrate their team’s exceptional progress and improvement over the past seven days, which oh so nearly turned the tables on the team which had beaten them last week with much greater comfort.

Watkins – “We can go there and get the job done”

Salford Red Devils’ Kallum Watkins believes Salford can rise to the challenge of St Helens ahead of their Round 1 clash with the reigning champions on Friday.

The England centre, who joined his boyhood club back in September, thinks the Red Devils have every reason to be confident that they can take victory from Saints in the opening round of the Betfred Super League.

Following a promising pre-season, a strong start to the campaign will be key to fulfilling Watkins’ wider ambition to bring silverware to the The Salford Stadium.

Watkins said: “It is exciting, you have got to take it as a challenge.

“For us, it has been a really good pre-season and we are confident that we can go into Friday and win.

“We are going up against the champions, there is no two ways about it, they are champions for a reason, they are a quality side and they have been the best side for the past two/three years.

“We have got a good squad, we have just got to believe in ourselves as a group that we can go there and get the job done.”

Watkins, who started in the 2017 World Cup final for England, is also harbouring aspirations that he will return to the international fold and knows that delivering key performances for Salford will be crucial to that.

“I want to be consistent in my game and make sure I am preparing as best as possible,” he explained.

“In terms of recovery, there is going to be times where we are playing a few games in a short space of time.

“I want to be successful with this club, I want to win trophies and I want to build on the ambition of what they want to achieve.

“Obviously with the World Cup coming up as well and the last time I played in an England shirt was the World Cup Final.

“Injury and performance has pushed that aside over the years so that is another goal for me to go for but I have got to prove that by putting my all on the field.”

Salford Red Devils’ Betfred Super League season opener kicks off at 6pm tomorrow evening at the Emerald Headingley Stadium, live on Sky Sports and on Our League for season ticket holders.

Written by: Will Dickson

Ian Watson | “We are going there to win”

Salford Red Devils are heading to the Emerald Headingley Stadium looking to maintain their 100% record in The Qualifiers however Ian Watson’s men will need to earn just their second victory at Leeds in the Super League era if they are to do so.
Watson said: “We have spoken together, as a group, that our attitude must be to go there and get the win by attacking Leeds, backing this up with solid defence, and playing throughout with the utmost confidence.”
“We haven’t been short in victories over them at the The Salford Stadium particularly in the past couple of seasons, and although previous Salford teams might have found it hard-going, when they have travelled over there we now have players in our ranks who have won there with other teams and know exactly how it is done.
“It will certainly be a good motivating factor to be one of the few Salford teams to go there and get the win. We need to be going there to get the two points we require which would then put the pressure on all the teams around us.
“Our win over them in the last fixture of the regular season will, nevertheless, be a considerably motivating factor for Leeds.”
Jackson Hastings – who debuted in instrumental fashion against Leeds earlier in the season – will miss the game through suspension but there are other halfbacks available to the Head Coach.
Watson said: “We do have a number of options any of which will cover Jackson’s absence. Jack Littlejohn has timed his recovery from injury to perfection and he held that role for most of the season prior to his injury. Josh Wood has filled in at halfback on occasions over recent weeks. I’d have full confidence in either of those two to step up and do a good job for us.
“We are a different team now from how we were earlier in the season, and we also have an additional hooker who can kick and has good organisational skills to go alongside those of whoever comes into the halves, to take the pressure of Rob Lui. It will be a good opportunity for us to show just how far we have progressed as a team.
“What Jackson has brought to us is that he leads by his enthusiasm. His kicking into the corners and then following through to make the first is great encouragement to the boys to get up there with him. He also generates that same enthusiasm in defence.
“It was his high level of competitiveness that was the cause of the incident with Gareth O’Brien, at the end of the match with Toronto. Circumstances just seemed to combine to bring about that outcome with the closed fist and contact with the head but I believe it was more carelessness than anything else.”

Squad | 19-man named for Qualifiers visit to Leeds Rhinos

Head Coach Ian Watson has named his 19-man squad for Friday’s Qualifiers clash with Leeds Rhinos at the Emerald Headingley Stadium, 7:45pm kick-off. 
Jack Littlejohn returns to the 19-man squad after a period on the sidelines with a bicep injury. Littlejohn scored twice – from fullback – in his last appearance against Warrington Wolves at the end of June.
Ryan Lannon retains his place after making a try-scoring return in Saturday’s victory over Toronto Wolfpack. George Griffin is also named after his first appearance since late June in last weekend’s win.
Luke Burgess will miss the game through suspension after receiving a red card in last week’s game against Toronto. Jackson Hastings will also serve his first of a two-game ban after he also saw red in the victory.
The 19-man squad in full is as follows: 
Kris Welham, Junior Sa’u, Niall Evalds, Rob Lui, Jack Littlejohn, Craig Kopczak, George Griffin, Josh Jones, Mark Flanagan, Lama Tasi, Ryan Lannon, Tyrone McCarthy, Josh Wood, Derrell Olpherts, Lee Mossop, Jake Bibby, Ed Chamberlain, Greg Burke, Joey Lussick.
 
Tickets for our trip to Leeds Rhinos are still available from the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office or over the phone up until 3pm on Friday 14th September. Salford Red Devils retain 25% of any early purchases from the The Salford Stadium. Supporters’ Coach travel is also available to book over the phone or at the The Salford Stadium  Ticket Office.

Tickets | Leeds Rhinos ticket period extended

Tickets are available for Friday’s trip to Leeds Rhinos from the Club Ticket Office and over the phone as the Red Devils look to make it four wins from four in The Qualifiers up until 3pm on Friday 14th September.
Prices will rise on gameday by £2 so purchase from the The Salford Stadium in advance to save money. Remember, Salford Red Devils retain 25% of any purchases made in advance from the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office.
Junior Swaps will be available for the game however fans must swap at the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office in advance as swaps will not be done at the Emerald Headingley Stadium. Salford Red Devils fans will be located in the Western Terrace.
Ticket prices are as follows:
Adults: £20.
Concessions (65+, Full-time students, Under 21, ambulant disabled): £13.
Juniors (16 and under): £10.
Carers: Free.
Junior Season Ticket Holders: Junior Swaps at The Salford Stadium Ticket Office.
Under 5’s: Do not need a ticket.
There is also a Supporters’ Coach available for fans wanting to make the trip to Emerald Headingley Stadium on Friday 14th September.
The coach is priced at £11 for all classes and Salford Red Devils retain 100% of all coach booking fees with the The Salford Stadium operating the ticketing process for the Supporters’ Coach.
The pick-up points and times can be seen below:
Chandos: 4:40pm.
Royal Sovereign: 4:50pm.
Eccles Town Hall: 5:05pm.
Dog & Partridge: 5:10pm.
The Salford Stadium: 5:30pm.
Please arrive at your pick-up point with plenty of time.
For any enquiries regarding ticketing for our trip to Leeds please contact us on 0161 785 1570 or E-Mail enquiries@salfordreddevils.net.

Tickets | Qualifiers trip to Leeds Rhinos now on sale

Tickets are now on sale for our trip to Leeds Rhinos on Friday 14th September – 7:45pm kick-off – in Round Five of The Qualifiers.
Prices will rise on gameday by £2 so purchase from the The Salford Stadium in advance to save money. Remember, Salford Red Devils retain 25% of any purchases made in advance from the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office.
Tickets will be available to purchase from the The Salford Stadium up until 9pm on Wednesday 12th September which means you can purchase your tickets for our trip to Leeds following our game at the The Salford Stadium against Toronto Wolfpack on Saturday 8th September.
Junior Swaps will be available for the game however fans must swap at the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office in advance as swaps will not be done at the Emerald Headingley Stadium. Salford Red Devils fans will be located in the Western Terrace.
Ticket prices are as follows:
Adults: £20.
Concessions (65+, Full-time students, Under 21, ambulant disabled): £13.
Juniors (16 and under): £10.
Carers: Free.
Junior Season Ticket Holders: Junior Swaps at The Salford Stadium Ticket Office.
Under 5’s: Do not need a ticket.
There is also a Supporters’ Coach available for fans wanting to make the trip to Emerald Headingley Stadium on Friday 14th September.
The coach is priced at £11 for all classes and Salford Red Devils retain 100% of all coach booking fees with the The Salford Stadium operating the ticketing process for the Supporters’ Coach.
The pick-up points and times can be seen below:
Chandos: 4:40pm.
Royal Sovereign: 4:50pm.
Eccles Town Hall: 5:05pm.
Dog & Partridge: 5:10pm.
The Salford Stadium: 5:30pm.
Please arrive at your pick-up point with plenty of time.
For any enquiries regarding ticketing for our trip to Leeds please contact us on 0161 785 1570 or E-Mail enquiries@salfordreddevils.net.
 

Welcome the Wolfpack!Tickets for our next home game against Toronto Wolfpack on Saturday 8th September are available to purchase at the Club Ticket Office, over the phone on 0161 786 1570 or SAVE MONEY by buying online, just CLICK HERE.

Factfile | Salford Red Devils vs Leeds Rhinos | Friday 27th July

Ahead of tomorrow’s final game of the regular Betfred Super League season for 2018, we take a look at all the facts and figures behind our clash with Leeds Rhinos.
Head-to-Head
Salford Red Devils haven’t had much luck against Leeds since the inception of the Betfred Super League beating the Rhinos on two occasions.
The Red Devils most recent victory against Leeds came in 2016 with Salford earning a narrow 14-10 victory at the The Salford Stadium. Salford’s other Betfred Super League triumph over the Rhinos came in 2009 in the form of a 30-20 Easter period win at the Emerald Headingley Stadium.
However, since Ian Watson’s sides last win over Leeds, the Rhinos have won six consecutive meetings with the most recent being a 0-20 win at the Emerald Headingley Stadium in the second game of the 2018 Easter period. Five of these six victories have come at the Emerald Headingley Stadium however with the sides meeting just once at the The Salford Stadium over the past two years.
Milestones
Salford Red Devils back-rower Tyrone McCarthy is in line to make his 150th career appearance this weekend against Leeds.
McCarthy has made 24 appearances for the Red Devils since arriving at the The Salford Stadium this time last season ahead of the Club’s Ladbrokes Challenge Cup semi-final. Tyrone has also made 31 appearances for Hull Kingston Rovers, 43 appearances for Warrington Wolves and played twice for NRL side St George Illawarra Dragons.
In addition, whilst at Warrington, McCarthy spent time on loan and dual-registration with Swinton Lions (11 games), Leigh Centurions (18 games) and Wakefield Trinity (7 games). The second-rower has also represented Ireland on 13 occasions.
2018 Stats
Jake Bibby’s try-scoring run came to an end last week against Catalans Dragons, but the flying winger remains the Red Devils top try-scorer with 11 tries this season. Bibby is one ahead of the Rhinos top try-scorer in the 2018 Betfred Super League which is Ash Handley. Wingers Ryan Hall and Tom Briscoe are close behind on nine tries apiece.
Richie Myler has proven a brilliant signing for Leeds and currently tops their try-assist tally with 23 in the Betfred Super League; the most of any player in this year’s competition.
Red Devils acting halfback Logan Tomkins is Salford’s top tackler with 630 however he is still sidelines for this weekend’s fixture. Tyrone McCarthy, Lama Tasi and Lee Mossop could all go over the 500 tackles mark for the 2018 Berfred Super League this season.
Leeds hooker Matt Parcell currently tops the Rhinos ranks in terms of tackles with 622 so far this season. Brad Singleton, Adam Cuthbertson and Jamie Jones-Buchanan have all racked up 500+ defensive efforts.
 

Ready for the Rhinos!Purchase your tickets for our game with Leeds on Friday 27th July from the Club Ticket Office, on 0161 786 1570 or by simply clicking HERE.

Stat Pack | Leeds Rhinos 20-0 Salford Red Devils

Salford Red Devils suffered defeat to Leeds on Easter Monday however there were still some impressive stats coming from the performance and we’ve broken them down in these week’s ‘Stat Pack’. 
Daniel Murray 
Prop-forward Daniel Murray started his first game of the 2018 season for the Red Devils after impressing on loan with Halifax RLFC and he’s our ‘player in focus’ this week.
Murray worked hard in defence making 30 tackles throughout the afternoon which was only bested by Logan Tomkins (41), Ben Nakubuwai (33) and Ryan Lannon (31). The youngster didn’t miss a single tackle in what was an impressive start to his 2018 for Salford.
And, it wasn’t just in defence where Murray stood strong making a total of 65 metres in his 11 carries and successfully busting two tackles. Following his performance, the competition for places in the pack is as strong as ever.
Yardage by the backs
Junior Sa’u is consistently one of the strongest runners in the Salford side and this weekend at Leeds was no difference with the Kiwi averaging 7.6 metres per carry.
However, it wasn’t just Sa’u who impressed with his yardage in attack with winger Jake Bibby also averaging 7.6 metres per carry. Bibby made seven carries while Sa’u amounted 10 carries.
Josh Jones averaged with the highest average gain in the forwards with seven metres and also made the most tackle busts with four.
Attempts to break Leeds down
Salford spent some considerable time on the Leeds line and players like Kris Welham and George Griffin both managed to earn quick play-the-balls.
Derrell Olpherts was a handful for Brian McDermott’s side as he managed to earn two penalties, a quick play-the-ball, a tackle bust and a successful offload.
Rob Lui attempted to penetrate the Rhinos defence with a range of kicks including two low kicks and three bombs.

Match Report | Leeds Rhinos 20-0 Salford Red Devils

Salford Red Devils fell to a 20-0 defeat at the hands of Leeds Rhinos despite producing a resilient performance at a rain-soaked Emerald Headingley Stadium.
Prior to today’s game, Salford had won just once at Headingley in the Super League era and this run looked set to continue as The Red Devils made a sluggish start to the contest –  some quick hands from the hosts allowed Tom Briscoe to dive over in the corner with just five minutes on the clock, however Kallum Watkins’ conversion attempt was unsuccessful.
Things quickly worsened for Ian Watson’s side as The Rhinos doubled their lead just twelve minutes later, Niall Evalds failed to keep hold of the ball and Ash Golding subsequently pounced on to the loose ball before touching down, Watkins added the extras to claim his first goal of the day.
Despite being behind, Salford stood up to the test ahead and almost got on the scoreboard when Jake Bibby broke towards the right-hand corner but Stevie Ward produced a try saving tackle to push Bibby into touch.
However, Leeds weren’t to be kept at bay for long and extended their lead further as Salford gave away a penalty 15m from their own line and the hosts opted to kick at goal – Watkins duly converted the penalty in what was the final point scoring action of the half.
Salford’s misfortune continued when Evalds suffered a head injury seconds before the interval – after a high shot from Handley caused the full-back to fall to the floor – and Lui switched to full-back early into the second period to fill in during Evalds’ absence.
Minutes later, club captain Weller Hauraki found himself placed on report by referee Greg Dolan as the forward’s challenge on former Red Devil Richie Myler was deemed a dangerous shoulder charge by the touch judges.
The Red Devils found themselves further behind when Kallum Watkins slotted home a penalty in front of the sticks twenty minutes from time – despite forging a number of attacking opportunities during the half.
Leeds crossed over again in the 76th minute when Josh Walters powered his way over from close-range after The Rhinos had forced Salford into successive goal-line drop outs, Watkins converted to take the hosts up to the 20 point mark and complete the scoring.
Leeds Lineup: Golding, Briscoe, Watkins, Handley, Hall, Moon, Myler, Delaney, Parcell, Singleton, Ward, Ablett, Walters
Interchanges: Dwyer, Ferres, Smith, Oledzki
Salford Lineup: Evalds, Bibby, Welham, Sa’u, Olpherts, Lui, Wood, Nakubuwai, Tomkins, Griffin, Jones, Burgess, Murray
Interchanges: Littlejohn, Hauraki, Tasi, Lannon
Leeds Scorers: Tries- Briscoe (5’), Golding (17’), Walters (76’)
Goals- Watkins (18’, 35’, 58’, 77’)
Salford Scorers: Tries- N/A
Goals- N/A
Man of the Match: Daniel Murray
Referee: Greg Dolan
Touch Judges: Joe Stearne & Peter Brooke
In Goal Judges: Connor Astbury & Joseph Turner
Attendance: 10,718 

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