Tag: Jake Bibby

Talking Points | Castleford Tigers 24-20 Salford Red Devils

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Salford Red Devils ran Castleford Tigers close at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle and there was plenty to talk about from a thrilling Betfred Super League clash. 
We take a look at some of the key talking points.
Competing with the best
Following last month’s loss to St Helens, Head Coach Ian Watson pointed to positives and said his side would learn from playing and competing with the best on a regular basis and this is something they displayed this weekend at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle.
The Red Devils fought till the end against Castleford with a late Jake Bibby try almost being the catalyst for a late fightback. At one stage Salford found themselves 18-4 down but some determined and clever attacking play saw them score two tries in quick succession to close the gap further.

Ian Watson’s side went toe-to-toe with the team who have the best win percentage in the Betfred Super League in recent seasons and on another day could have very well come away from Castleford with two points.
While the result wasn’t quite what the Red Devils wanted, if they can maintain the level of performance, we have seen over the last month there is no reason Salford – as Ian Watson mentioned in his post-match presser – become contenders in 2019.
Adam Walker debuts 
After almost two years away from the field, Adam Walker made his long-awaited Rugby League return coinciding with his debut for Salford Red Devils. Walker was named amongst the interchanges and entered the field midway through the first half in place of Gil Dudson.
Walker immediately looked a threat with ball in hand causing a few issues for the Tigers defence with Paul McShane getting sent to the sin-bin after tackling the Red Devils forward. The former Hull Kingston Rovers, St Helens and Wakefield Trinity man looked to make an impact as well and will only improve with more game time.
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Head Coach Ian Watson said: “I thought he looked dangerously with ball in hand and defensively I thought there were a few times where he lounged in but that’s fatigue and taking that into contact. We’ll see how it pans out when he’s got match fitness. He will get better, and he’ll be a great addition for us.”
Lussick continues to impress 
Joey Lussick played a full eighty minutes against Castleford Tigers on Sunday afternoon and was a standout performer for the Red Devils helping guide Salford around the field and crossing for his fourth try of the season.
Lussick has developed into a real threat on the opposition line whether he gets the ball out to Rob Lui and Jackson Hastings at pace or whether he throws a dummy and ‘goes himself’. The Australian has scored in four games this season with three of his tries coming on the road against Hull Kingston Rovers, Catalans Dragons and Castleford Tigers, respectively.


In addition, he was an absolute rock in defence making 45 tackles and often going head-to-head with Castleford’s star-man on the afternoon Paul McShane. Lussick’s ability to kick from hooker also offers another option alongside the Red Devils’ halfback pairing.
Lussick will be looking to carry his fine form into another huge Betfred Super League fixture this weekend as Salford welcome Wigan Warriors looking to return to winning ways at the The Salford Stadium.
Sin-bin and potential sin-bin 
Paul McShane was sent to the sin-bin in the first half for his involvement in an altercation between the two sides which also involved Adam Walker. Unfortunately, during this period the Red Devils didn’t manage to cross the line and capitalise on their man advantage. Paul McShane was central to everything Castleford produced in attack.

In the second half, Tigers centre Alex Foster was adjudged to have tackled Joey Lussick off the ball by referee Robert Hicks as Jackson Hastings looked to find the hooker on a half-break. While Salford were awarded a penalty, the decision was made not to sin-bin Foster.
However, when questioned about this decision, Head Coach, Ian Watson, said: “This wasn’t the reason we lost the game.”

Ian Watson | “We have to believe we’re a good team”

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Head Coach Ian Watson was pleased to see his sides display against Castleford Tigers while also feeling frustrated that they didn’t come away from the Mend-A-Hose Jungle with a victory.
He gave his thoughts on a number of subjects in the post-match press conference.
On the performance…
There were a few little errors and defensive lapses and I think they gave Castleford the win. The one thing I have said to the boys is that we have to believe we are a good team and we’re showing it now against Castleford away from home and against St Helens at home which was a game we learnt a lot from. We are quite a young team but we’ve got to believe that we can come to Castleford and win and I think we just didn’t start the game with that mentality as we put them on the front foot and they started playing like a top team does putting you under pressure and getting repeat sets which Paul McShane was central to. Once we got the game in the balance a little bit, we started to control that and got on the front foot and dictating field position as well. It’s our own fault we’ve lost the game.
On the difference between the sides…
They’ve been a top team for the last few years. We’re still quite a young team in many ways with our spine being quite young with Joey Lussick and Jackson Hastings in there. We just need to be a little bit more patient at times instead of chasing the game. Paul McShane did that really well, they started completing sets and earning repeat sets through goal line drop-outs. They persisted and sometimes you just have to deal with that and try and turn the tide, but I want to give massive credit to our players for competing. I do think that game will hit home with the lads to see they’re a good side coming to Castleford and almost winning the game.
On the start to the season…
Yeah, we’re happy with the start to the season but we want more – everybody always wants more. We all want to win every game we go into but I’m hoping the games we’ve played, and the performances and results can kick us on for the remainder of the season. We can show everyone what we’re about then and show that we’re a team that can be contenders. I think if we go about games the way we have in spells and piece that together we’ll be a strong team and we’ll trouble a few more this season.
On Adam Walker…
I thought he looked dangerously with ball in hand and defensively I thought there were a few times where he lounged in but that’s fatigue and taking that into contact. We’ll see how it pans out when he’s got match fitness. He will get better, and he’ll be a great addition for us.
On the result…
I think we’re really disappointed with the result because we know we’ve let an opportunity slip through our own little errors and misreads. I think we’re good enough to compete with these teams now, but we just need to believe that we are good enough on a regular basis, but we need to show that next week against Wigan Warriors when they come to the The Salford Stadium. I think we’ve had a tough month here with St Helens, then Catalans away and now Castleford away so we can’t wait to get back to the The Salford Stadium and show what we’ve learnt from the last three games.
On Jake Bibby’s performance…
Jake Bibby is a great kid and he’s had to wait for his opportunity to get into the team. He’s got the shirt at the moment if I’m honest as he’s doing fantastic in both attack and defence. We always knew defensively he was brilliant, and we’ve worked on the attacking side of his game – he’s been working closely with Martin Gleeson and spending a lot of time with him. He’s showing us what he’s learned over the last couple of years.
On a possible sin-bin offence by Alex Foster…
I thought so at the time but that’s not the reason we’ve lost the game. We need to be smarter in certain areas so I can’t use that as a reason as to why we weren’t victorious. It was definitely a good contest.
 
Tickets are available for Salford Red Devils next home game against Wigan Warriors at 3pm on Sunday 22nd April. You can buy tickets from the AJ Bell Stadium Ticket Office, over the phone on 0161 786 1570 or by buying online HERE. You will save money buying in advance!

Squad | Ian Watson makes one change for the trip to Castleford

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Head Coach Ian Watson has named his 19-man squad for Sunday’s trip to the Mend-A-Hose Jungle to face Castleford Tigers, 3:30pm kick-off.
Adam Walker is now eligible to play for Salford Red Devils and is named in this weekend’s squad in place of Greg Burke. The former Scotland international will be hopeful of making his debut for the Red Devils.
Jake Bibby retains his place in the 19-man squad after a sensational performance at Catalans which saw him score twice and claim two try-assists. Daniel Murray is again included after another impressive showing in the south of France.
Tickets are still available for Sunday’s visit to Castleford from the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office up until 4pm on Saturday 16th March. Purchase in advance and save money!
Here is the 19-man squad in full:

 

Talking Points | Catalans Dragons 0-46 Salford Red Devils

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Salford Red Devils earned a huge 0-46 victory over Catalans Dragons to move up to 4th in the Betfred Super League and we take a look at some of the key talking points from the dominant display.

Blistering Bibby

Jake Bibby made his first appearance of the 2019 Betfred Super League season and what an appearance it was. Bibby – who has predominantly featured on the wing for Salford – was named at centre and put on a fantastic attacking display down the left-hand side.
The 23-year-old crossed for two tries and also notched two try-assists. Bibby finished breakaway tries either side of half-time firstly planting down a Jackson Hastings kick before taking an offload and linking up with the halfback again to score just one minute after the interval.


Bibby was a constant threat for the Red Devils on the left-hand side and got his hands free on a number of occasions to offload the ball. Two of his offloads led to tries firstly his flick to Niall Evalds who punted the ball down field with George Griffin eventually finishing the move before Bibby returned the favour to Hastings as he flicked the ball out to the Australian for him to find the try-line.
The centre’s inclusion came about due to an injury to Junior Sa’u who had been ever-present up until this weekend. Bibby’s performance has emphasised the strength in depth in Ian Watson’s squad particularly in the centres alongside Kris Welham, Junior Sa’u and Ed Chamberlain.

Dogged Defence

Throughout the 2019 season so far, Head Coach Ian Watson has continuously made it clear that defence will win Salford Red Devils games, and this is something they have been working hard on which has been evident in the opening weeks of the season.
Salford Red Devils nilled London Broncos in Round Two of the 2019 season and this was the first time they had kept a team scoreless in the Betfred Super League since 2006. They also went on to keep Hull Kingston Rovers scoreless in the second half of their recent meeting which allowed a memorable comeback at KCOM Craven Park.

That resilient defence continued this weekend as the Red Devils managed to keep Catalans to nil in a fantastic performance. In the second half, Catalans did earn a number of repeated sets on the Salford line, but Ian Watson’s men stood firm and denied the Dragons.
It is extremely difficult to keep a side scoreless particularly away from home. The Red Devils will no doubt take confidence from this and be looking to carry this dogged defence into next weekend’s fixture against Castleford Tigers.

Away Form

It may be too early in the season to start discussing ‘form’ however one thing that is clear is Salford Red Devils’ improvement on the road in the early stages of the 2019 Betfred Super League season.
Last year, the Red Devils won just one away game in the Betfred Super League and they have already trebled that tally in 2019. They earned yet another away victory against Huddersfield before an impressive comeback win against Hull Kingston Rovers.
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However, a 0-46 win over Catalans in Perpignan is certainly the most impressive victory so far considering the Red Devils hadn’t come away from the south of France with two points for eight long years.
This form has been helped by some brilliant travelling support from the Red Devils faithful at Huddersfield Giants, Hull Kingston Rovers and Catalans Dragons. This is something Ian Watson eluded to in his post-match press conference at the Stade Gilbert Brutus.

Lawton Debuts 

Off-season signing Adam Lawton made his Betfred Super League bow for the Red Devils this weekend at Catalans coming off the interchange bench in the second half. Lawton had spent the last month on loan with Betfred Championship side Rochdale Hornets for whom he powered over for three tries.
While Lawton didn’t cross for a try, he immediately settled at the top level and didn’t put a foot wrong. Catalans had begun to apply a lot of pressure to the Salford line as Lawton entered the fray, but the former Widnes man stood strong and defended a number of goal line sets to help keep the Dragons out.

Lawton will be looking to push for a regular spot in the Salford side throughout the 2019 season and there is no question that the big man will cause issues for Betfred Super League defences with ball in hand.
 
Tickets for Salford Red Devils next fixture against Castleford Tigers at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle on Sunday 17th March are now available from the Club Ticket Office and over the phone on 0161 786 1570. For ticket and coach details, click HERE.
Salford Red Devils next home fixture sees them welcome Wigan Warriors to the The Salford Stadium on Sunday 24th March and you can purchase tickets from the Club Ticket Office, over the phone on 0161 786 1570 or online HERE. For ticket prices, click HERE.

Ian Watson | “It’s our defence we take pride in”

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Head Coach Ian Watson was delighted with his sides 0-46 victory over Catalans Dragons and discussed a range of pleasing aspects of the performance.

On the performance…

We felt we did a lot of positive stuff last week against St Helens. We did things that maybe the supporters don’t notice but players see in those big game and we knew coming to Catalans we’d have to be at that level of performance or above it so we kept the game plan really simple this week because we knew how good Catalans were but coming here and nilling Catalans is above what we thought we’d achieve here. The defence won the game. The way we kicked them into pockets and then we were really resilient at the back end and that won us the game. The attack is the icing on the cake for us but it’s our defence we take pride in.

On surprising people with the victory…

Every week we go in to play and I know the players and I believe we’ll beat everyone we play. It’s no surprise to me that we’ve won. We’ve got a good group but they’ve just got to grow and mature together in learning how to win the bigger games and the mentality we had against St Helens we had today as well, but we were better against Catalans. It shows we can beat teams by doing things right, but we’re used to people knocking us – it’s nothing new.

On the forward battle…

Our pack had a meeting the day before the game and said that if we were to win this game our pack needed to step up here. Lee Mossop – despite the latter not playing – led the way in that meeting, Mark Flanagan came back in and Gil Dudson has been a leader since he arrived, those guys stood up and made it clear they wanted to set a standard for the pack, and everyone has seen what they’re capable of. I thought Daniel Murray was outstanding and Ben Nakubuwai too. Adam Lawton must have come on and had to defend six goal line sets and that’s the tough part of the game and his attitude was not to be beaten there and that was the pleasing thing.

On Jake Bibby…

He was absolutely outstanding today. He’s been waiting for his chance and we’ve always had Junior Sa’u in there who always does a good job and is a leader for us. Bibby has had to be patient this season, but he’s took his chance today and put a bit of pressure in the centre positions. We’ve been waiting for Bibby to play because we sensed in pre-season, he was ready this year to step up and he’s shown a real good account of himself there.

On the halves…

I think Jackson Hastings and Rob Lui were very mature today. From the sideline you can hear them talking and Robbie was very mature in how he managed the game and he was talking to Jackson all the time, so he was helping him because we have to remember Jackson is only young and Robbie is the experienced half and he’s played outside Jonathan Thurston so he knows how to pass his maturity onto Jackson.

On preparing for Castleford…

We knew we were coming into a tough run of games but we’re confident as a group that we can perform, and we’ll be keeping our game plan really simple, so everybody knows their role. The lads deserve a lot of credit for this performance and should take the plaudits, but we’ll be back to work next week for Castleford.

On the attitude…

The pleasing stuff was when we defended a number of back-to-back sets and then went down the other end and the support play was still there. We did make an error, but our defensive line got straight back in position and that just shows your team is hungry and ready to work hard for each other.

On the travelling support…

We’ve spoken about the away fans all year and I think they’ve been outstanding at every game. You can’t knock them they were unbelievable singing the roof off the place. I know they love a good trip to Catalans, but this will be better for the result and they hope they enjoy their night.
 
Tickets for Salford Red Devils next fixture against Castleford Tigers at the Mend-A-Hose Jungle on Sunday 17th March are now available from the Club Ticket Office and over the phone on 0161 786 1570. For ticket and coach details, click HERE.
Salford Red Devils next home fixture sees them welcome Wigan Warriors to the The Salford Stadium on Sunday 24th March and you can purchase tickets from the Club Ticket Office, over the phone on 0161 786 1570 or online HERE. For ticket prices, click HERE.

Match Report | Catalans Dragons 0-46 Salford Red Devils

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

 Salford Red Devils ended an eight year wait for a victory in Perpignan in emphatic fashion with a dominant 0-46 win over Catalans Dragons.
Jake Bibby and George Griffin both scored twice while Joey Lussick, Jackson Hastings, Niall Evalds and Ken Sio all also found the try-line in a rampant evening at the Stade Gilbert Brutus for Ian Watson’s men.
It took just eight minutes for the Red Devils to take the lead as Lussick burrowed his way over from acting halfback in almost identical fashion to his tries against Leeds Rhinos and Hull Kingston Rovers earlier in the season. Sio converted.
A real arm-wrestle ensued throughout the first half but Salford were on top and they took their chance to further their lead when Sio slotted a penalty goal after 27 minutes.
As half-time drew closer, Salford turned on the style with two tries in quick succession. Griffin sliced through the Catalans defence to score from close-range before Bibby scored on the hooter. The Dragons put the ball to ground and a sensational pick up from Sio got Salford on the break. Hastings kicked forward for the winger who narrowly missed the ball, but Bibby was on hand to finish a great try. Sio converted the first to give Salford an 18-0 lead at the break.
The Red Devils begun the second half where they left off before the interval as Bibby scored his second try of the evening just one minute after getting back underway. Evalds slid through the Catalans defence from deep before Bibby and Hastings linked up well to allow the centre to score. Sio converted.
Just minutes later, Salford extended their lead even further thanks to a second Griffin try. Bibby’s offload was kicked down field by Evalds and collected by an onrushing Hastings who displayed fantastic vision to find the back-rower who finished under the posts. Sio converted.
Salford’s dominance continued and Hastings went from provider to scorer as he and Bibby again caused issues for the Dragons defence. Hastings weaved around the Catalans defence before finding Bibby who offloaded the ball back to the Australian to score.
Evalds was a constant thorn in the side of the Dragons and he was rewarded with a try of his own a few minutes later. Josh Jones put Lussick through a gap and the hooker tipped onto a pacey Evalds who finishes some flowing Rugby League from the Red Devils. Sio converted to take Salford to the 40-point mark.
It was Sio who would have the final word as he strolled over the try-line and under the Catalans posts after a clever offload from Bibby. The winger converted to round off a truly memorable win for Salford.
 
Salford Red Devils: Evalds, Olpherts, Welham, Bibby, Sio; Lui, Hastings; Dudson, Lussick, Murray, Jones, Turgut, Flanagan.
Interchanges: Burke, Nakubuwai, Griffin, Lawton.
 
Catalans Dragons: Tomkins, Yaha, Whitley, Williame, Tierney; Langi, Smith; Casty, McIlorum, Moa, Edwards, Jullien, Baitieri.
Interchanges: Bird, Bousquet, Goudemand, Belmas.
 
Salford Tries: Lussick (8), Griffin (38’, 46’), Bibby (40’, 41’), Hastings (46’), Evalds (58’), Sio (78).
Salford Conversions: Sio (9’, 27’, 39’ 42’, 47’, 59’, 79’).
Catalans Tries: N/A.
Catalans Conversions: N/A.
 
Referee: Scott Mikalauskas.

Match Preview | Catalans Dragons vs Salford Red Devils | Saturday 9th March

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

As anticipation builds for Salford’s meeting with Catalan Dragons, here’s everything you need to know ahead of the game this weekend.

Last Time Out

Last Thursday, Salford hosted top of the table St Helens in a 4-26 defeat, with Salford’s only try coming from Derrell Olpherts. Despite the result, it was a positive performance from the Red Devils showing a resilient display against the Saints attack.
Catalan Dragons saw a very close game against Warrington Wolves last Saturday, with Sam Tomkins kicking a match-winning penalty from 45 metres in the final five minutes of the game for the 23-22 victory.
With a reputation of being a hard team to play at home, Catalan had an early advantage from Brayden Wiliame’s try in the second minute of the game. This was followed by a further try from Kenny Edwards after a defensive error on Warrington’s side, with Sam Tomkins securing the conversion both times to bring the score to 12-0 in the first 15 minutes of the game.

Form

Winning three of their five fixtures this season have Salford currently sitting fifth in the table with six points. So far the Red Devils have claimed victory in both away fixtures, putting in impressive performances at Huddersfield and Hull KR.
Salford are currently in the lead for the most attacking kicks (63) of any other team in the league for the 2019 Betfred Super League season and have shown an outstanding defensive display in recent games.
Catalans will be looking for a second home victory tonight after their close 23-22 win over Warrington Wolves last weekend. Steve McNamara’s team have won two of four of their matches this season, with both wins coming from home fixtures.
Currently sitting at seventh in the table with only four games played, the Dragons have the chance to catch up to Salford if they were to come out victorious.

Head-to-head

Salford’s last game against Catalan Dragons saw them leave Stade Gilbert Brutus with a 44-10 defeat; with Salford’s two tries coming from Derrell Olpherts and Josh Wood.
A stadium of 8,672 saw a game that started off on even ground with Fouah Yaha opening the scoring for Catalan. It was Olpherts for Salford who crossed in the 21st minute to bring the Red Devils into the game.
Salford failed to hold off against Catalan’s Jason Baitieri, Kenny Edwards and Yaha, who won three tries in quick succession, with Josh Drinkwater converting two to take the score to 28-4 at half-time.
A try from Josh Wood, followed by a goal from Ed Chamberlain proved not enough to fight back in the second half, as Yaha scored a hat-trick for Catalan. With one further try from Edwards and two goals from Drinkwater.
The 44-10 win for Catalan secured their place in the 2019 Super League.

Team News

Tonight will see goalkicking winger Ed Chamberlain possibly make his first competitive appearance after returning from an injury that saw him miss the early rounds of the 2019 Betfred Super League season. Jake Bibby is also in contention to make his first start of 2019.
Tonight, Catalan will see the return of Greg Bird and Lambert Belmas who will both be making their first appearance of the season.

Squads

Salford: Niall Evalds, Ed Chamberlain, Kris Welham, Jake Bibby, Robert Lui, Gil Dudson, Josh Jones, George Griffin, Mark Flanagan, Joey Lussick, Greg Burke, Tyrone McCarthy, Ben Nakubuwai, Logan Tomkins, Daniel Murray, Derrell Olpherts, Ken Sio, Jansin Turgot, Jackson Hastings.
Catalan: Brayden Wiliame, Lewis Tierney, Samisoni Lang, Matty Smith, Remi Casty, Micky McIlorum, Sam Moa, Kenny Edwards, Greg Bird, Julian Bousquet, Mika Simon, Benjamin Jullian, Matt Whitley, Mickael Goudemand, Lambert Belmas, Lucas Albert, Jason Baitieri, Fouad Yaha, Sam Tomkins.

Squad | Ian Watson names 19-man for trip to Catalans

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Head Coach Ian Watson has named his 19-man squad to travel to Perpignan to face Catalans Dragons on Saturday 9th March.
Ed Chamberlain – who has missed the early weeks of the season through injury – is named in the squad and could make his first competitive appearance of the 2019 season.
Jake Bibby is also looking to make his first start of the 2019 Betfred Super League season. Mark Flanagan will be looking to come back into the starting team as will George Griffin who missed last week’s game against St Helens after pulling up in the warm-up.
Lee Mossop misses the game after picking an injury in last Thursday’s game against St Helens.
Here is the full 19-man squad:

Squad | Ian Watson makes one change for Saints

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Head Coach Ian Watson has named his 19-man squad for Thursday’s Betfred Super League fixture with St Helens at the AJ Bell Stadium, 7:45pm kick-off.
Mark Flanagan comes into the squad in place of Lee Mossop. Tyrone McCarthy and Daniel Murray retain their places after impressive showings at KCOM Craven Park last weekend.
Jake Bibby will be looking for his first start of the 2019 season.
Tickets for Thursday’s game against St Helens are available to purchase at the AJ Bell Stadium Ticket Office, over the phone on 0161 786 1570 or online HERE.
Here is the full 19-man squad:

Squad | Ian Watson makes one change to 19-man squad

Posted on by Luke Wallworth

Head Coach Ian Watson has made just one change to the 19-man squad as Salford Red Devils prepare for Saturday’s trip to KCOM Craven Park to face Hull Kingston Rovers.
Daniel Murray has entered the side and is in contention to make his first Betfred Super League appearance of 2019. Tyrone McCarthy will be looking to force his way into the starting side for the first time this year against one of his former clubs while Jake Bibby is also challenging for a spot in the team.
Ken Sio will make his first visit back to KCOM Craven Park since leaving Hull Kingston Rovers back in 2016.
Tickets for Saturday’s game against Hull Kingston Rovers are still available from the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office and over the phone on 0161 786 1570. You can also book coach travel for this fixture by visiting the The Salford Stadium Ticket Office and over the phone on 0161 786 1570. Salford Red Devils retain 25% of any early ticket purchase. To see ticket prices and coach pick-up times and points, click HERE.
The full squad is as follows:

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