Following the recent Qualifiers fixture release, Salford discovered that they will face Hull Kingston Rovers, Widnes Vikings, Halifax RLFC, Toronto Wolfpack, Leeds Rhinos, London Broncos and Toulouse Olympique. Here we take an in-depth look at the last year’s Betfred Super League winners who now find themselves in the Qualifiers – Leeds Rhinos.
Season so far
On the back of a hugely successful 2017 season which saw Leeds Rhinos pick up their eighth Betfred Super League crown, defeating Castleford Tigers 24-6 in the Grand Final at Old Trafford, Leeds have struggled in 2018 and now see themselves back in The Qualifiers for the second time in three season.
Wins against Warrington Wolves and Hull KR ensured that they started the 2018 season well but a loss to Widnes Vikings ended February on a sour note. March started with hard fought victories over Hull FC and St Helens before falling 25-24 to Castleford Tigers despite a spirited resurgence coming back from a 24-point deficit, this unfortunately proved to not be enough on a day when a late Kallum Watkins conversion attempt drifted agonisingly close to sealing an impressive comeback for Leeds.
April followed a very similar trend to past months, early victories over Wakefield Trinity and Salford however were followed by defeats to Wigan Warriors and Hull FC, before a second victory of the season against KR.
This victory was followed by one of the worst runs in Leeds’ recent memory, seven consecutive Betfred Super League losses against the likes of Huddersfield Giants, Warrington Wolves, St Helens and two losses to Catalan Dragons.
This run of form lead to the dismissal of Head Coach Brian McDermott after six years and eight honours. The replacement for McDermott was the coaching team of James Lowes and Kevin Sinfield who would take the roles of Head Coach and Leeds’ first ever Director of Rugby, respectively.
Since Sinfield’s appointment Leeds have won just one outing – a 34-0 thrashing of bottom placed Widnes Vikings. This coupled with a 42-10 defeat at the hands of Castleford Tigers, a 38-22 loss to Salford, avenging the reverse fixture, and a 20-20 draw versus Wakefield Trinity meant Leeds would enter the Qualifiers, placed a disappointing ninth in the Betfred Super League.
Director of Rugby
Leeds Rhinos First Team Coach is former Bradford Bulls hooker James Lowes. Lowes won two Betfred Super League titles during his time at the Bulls. Lowes has spent time coaching since his retirement from the game in 2003, including spells in the backroom staff at Salford, Warrington Wolves and England. He was also first team coach at Warrington and Bradford Bulls prior to his current spell in charge of Leeds.
Overseeing Lowes is the new Director of Rugby, Leeds Rhinos’ legendary captain Kevin Sinfield. Sinfield made over 500 appearances throughout a glittering career with Leeds where he was a seven-time Betfred Super League winner as well as earning two Ladbrokes Challenge Cup crowns.
Sinfield proved a highly popular appointment last month when he re-joined the Club and will be looking to keep the Rhinos in the Betfred Super League.
Captain
27-year-old England regular Kallum Watkins is the Rhinos current captain. However, Watkins suffered a nasty anterior cruciate ligament injury in Leeds’ defeat to Castleford Tigers in May, ruling him out for around eight months.
In his absence Leeds have several experienced players they could call on to try to replace the leadership void left in Watkins’ stead. The man they are likely to look to though is 25-year-old prop forward Brad Singleton. Singleton has captained Leeds a few times since Watkins was ruled out, including this past weekend in their 48-12 loss to Warrington Wolves in the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup.
Singleton has been at Leeds for his entire career, making his debut in 2011 against Salford in a 48-12 win. Since then he spent spells out on loan at Dewsbury Rams, Wakefield Trinity and Hunslet Hawks. Since his time away Singleton returned to Leeds and became a regular for the Betfred Super League side, playing a major part in their treble winning side of 2015.
If Leeds are to put an end to their slump they will sorely need payers like Brad Singleton to stand up to the pressure.
One to watch
28-year-old scrum half Richie Myler started his career with hometown side Widnes Vikings, making just two fleeting appearances before making the short move across to Salford. Myler had a successful spell with the club. In his first season he scored an impressive 25 tries in 32 matches helping the Red Devils to the 2008 National League One title, earning himself the opportunity to play in the Betfred Super League for the first time the following season as well as gaining the Co-Operative Player of the Year award.
Ahead of the 2010 Super League season Richie Myler found himself on the move again, this time to Warrington Wolves for £200,000, a record for a teenager in the Rugby League.
His spell at the Halliwell Jones stadium can be regarded as a lucrative one. Myler quickly found himself one of the league’s best halfbacks. In his seven years he scored an impressive 77 tries in 139 games. He did miss out on the 2010 Ladbrokes Challenge Cup final due to injury but made up for it by helping his Warrington side beat Leeds Rhinos in the 2012 final.
Myler left Warrington following the 2015 season, joining Catalan Dragons where he spent two years, his new side would go on to win the 2017 Million Pound Game to retain their place in the Super League. A few months later he would be on the move again, this time to Leeds Rhinos where he’s enjoyed an entertaining first season despite sides struggles. Myler has scored four tries and leads the Betfred Super League in try assists with 23 in 19 games.
It is this creativity which will make Myler Leeds’ dangerman throughout The Qualifiers.
When’s the game
Salford will make the trip to the Emerald Headingley Stadium on Friday 14th September with kick off time at 7:45pm.
Ticket details and coach travel will be released in due course.
Written by Matt Tandy.
Tag: Richie Myler
Factfile | Catalans Dragons vs Salford Red Devils | Dacia Magic Weekend
We’ve got a special stat-packed ‘Factfile’ this week covering everything you need to know about Salford’s history at the Dacia Magic Weekend and our upcoming fixture against Catalans Dragons.
Magic Weekend
Salford are one of eleven teams to have featured at the Magic Weekend on ten or more occasions. The Red Devils have competed at the Magic Weekend ten times, the same amount as Castleford Tigers and Hull Kingston Rovers.
Salford currently sit 9th in the all-time Magic Weekend table with eight points (four wins), the same as Hull FC with the Black and Whites having played one more game at the event. A win against Catalans on Sunday would see Ian Watson’s side climb to 8th in the all-time table as they currently trail the Dragons by one point however the Frenchmen have played one more fixture at the Magic Weekend.
Salford at the Magic Weekend
Salford’s Magic Weekend record didn’t get off to a good start with the Red Devils failing to win any of their opening four games at the event.
Warrington beat Salford in Cardiff in 2007 18-50 in a season which saw the Red Devils relegated meaning they missed out on a place in Cardiff the year after.
Once Salford returned to the top flight they suffered defeats in Edinburgh in 2009 and 2010. Harlequins beat Salford 16-24 before Warrington once again earned a dominant victory, 16-68.
Wales-based Crusaders overcame Salford 42-12 in 2011 as the Magic Weekend returned to Cardiff. However, the Dacia Magic Weekend moved closer to home and it garnered the Red Devils first win at the event as Adam Sidlow’s late try won the game 38-34 against Huddersfield Giants.
Another year in Manchester marked another victory for Salford as they edged out Widnes Vikings 28-22. However, Salford couldn’t remain unbeaten at the Etihad Stadium as the Vikings returned the favour a year later with a 30-24 win.
Widnes and Salford shared victories in the first two events at Newcastle’s St James’ Park. The Red Devils won their most recent Dacia Magic Weekend fixture with a 22-36 win over event debutants Leigh Centurions in the Toon.
Catalans at the Magic Weekend
Catalans have a similar record to Salford at the Dacia Magic Weekend winning four, losing six however they have played an extra game which they drew.
The Frenchmen’s first two Magic Weekend appearances came against Harlequins RL (Now London Broncos) with a narrow 28-32 in 2007 before an even smaller margin of victory a year later as Catalans won 18-16.
In Edinburgh, Catalans suffered defeats to Leeds and Castleford before another loss at the hands of Harlequins RL in Cardiff in 2011. The Dragons finally ended their losing-streak at the Dacia Magic Weekend in 2012 as they overcame London Broncos (Previously known as Harlequins RL).
A 42-18 win over London in 2012 was followed up by an almost identical win in 2013 as they ran-out 46-18 win at the Etihad Stadium. Catalans earned a two-point victory over London in 2014 at Newcastle before a 22-22 draw with Huddersfield Giants in 2015.
Wakefield Trinity edged out the French side thanks to a monster Jacob Miller drop-goal in 2016 before Catalans lost to Huddersfield 10-18 in last year’s event.
Scoring in Salford games at Magic Weekend
Luke Dorn crossed for Salford’s first-ever Dacia Magic Weekend try in the 18-50 loss against Warrington in 2007. Martin Gleeson crossed in this game for Warrington and would score for Salford in the event six years later.
Dorn – alongside Gleeson – was a player who scored both for and against Salford at the Dacia Magic Weekend as he crossed for Harlequins RL when the sides met in 2009. Richie Myler is also amongst the list of players to score for and against Salford crossing for the Red Devils in 2009 before scoring a brace for Wire a year later in 2010.
Stefan Ratchford scored a brace for Salford in this game which he followed up with another double a year later against Warrington. Ratchford is Salford’s all-time top try-scorer at the event with four tries.
While Ratchford sits on two doubles at the event there’s a host of other Red Devils who have also scored braces at the Dacia Magic Weekend – Joel Moon (2012), Jodie Broughton (2012), Adam Sidlow (2012), Jordan James (2013), Daniel Vidot (2016), Ben Murdoch-Masila (2017) and Greg Johnson (2017). Salford are yet to have a player score a hat-trick at the Dacia Magic Weekend.
However, three players have scored hat-tricks against the Red Devils at the Dacia Magic Weekend – Michael Witt (Crusaders, 2011), Joe Mellor (Widnes, 2013) and Kevin Brown (Widnes, 2015).
Of the current squad, Greg Johnson leads the way with Dacia Magic Weekend tries sitting on three after a double last year against Leigh Centurions alongside a solitary try versus Widnes in 2015. Junior Sa’u (2014), Kris Welham (2017) and Niall Evalds (2017) are the other current Salford players to score for the Club at the event.
Head-to-Head
Salford Red Devils and Catalans Dragons have had shared success in recent seasons with three wins apiece in the fixture since a memorable 40-40 draw in March 2015.
The Red Devils have won each of the last two meetings between the teams both coming in the form of dominant home victories at the The Salford Stadium – 32-16 (March 2018), 50-12 (May 2017).
The back and forth results against each other have been a regular feature since Catalans’ inclusion into Betfred Super League with Salford winning 11, the Dragons winning on 12 occasions and there being one draw between the two sides.
This will be the first-ever meeting between the sides at the Dacia Magic Weekend.
Flashback | Leeds Rhinos 20-30 Salford Red Devils | 13th April 2009
Salford have had a torrid time over the years at Headingley winning just once at Leeds in the summer era – so it wasn’t difficult to choose this weeks ‘flashback’.
It was The Red Devils first season back in the Super League following promotion via the licensing system and Shaun McRae’s side earned their third victory of the season, and their first away from home, against eventual 2009 League Leaders’ Shield winners and Super League winners Leeds Rhinos.
The visitors raced into an impressive 22-6 by the 50th minute. John Wilshere opened the scoring for Salford on the back of a clever grubber kick from Richie Myler. Mark Henry soon extended the lead as he touched down in the corner after some flowing hands down the line.
Jamie Jones Buchanan soon crossed for the Rhinos to narrow the arrears but a mistake from Ali Lauititi was pounced on by Myler who then went 70 metres to finish a magnificient solo effort.
Myler’s kicking game was causing issues for the Rhinos and Robbie Paul benefitted when one of Myler’s grubber kicks richocheted into the half-backs arms to score. Wilshere converted to give Salford a 22-6 lead.
But, Leeds wouldn’t go down without a fight as Keith Senior and Ryan Hall linked up well with the latter scoring. Wilshere attempted to slow down a Rhinos comeback with a long-range penalty goal but some good play from Kevin Sinfield and Jones-Buchanan allowed Senior to score before Jamie Peacock barrelled his way over with seven minutes remaining.
The Red Devils led by just four points heading into the closing stages but they managed to crush any hopes of a late Rhinos victory thanks to another breakaway try. A Leeds pass went to ground before being latched onto by Jordan Turner who went 60 metres to score. Wilshere added the extras to give Salford their first ever Super League victory over the Rhinos.
The teams that day – April 13th 2009
Salford: Wilshere, Henry, Littler, Turner, Ratchford; Smith, Myler; Cashmere, Alker, Stapleton, Adamson, Parker, Swain. Interchanges: Sibbit, Leuluai, Paul, Jewitt.
Leeds: Webb, Jones-Bishop, Ablett, Senior, Hall; McGuire, Burrow; Burgess, Diskin, Bailey, Jones-Buchanan, Kirke, Sinfield. Interchanges: Leuluai, Lauititi, Peacock, Buderus.
Flashback – Warrington Wolves 16 – 18 Salford Red Devils
While the Red Devils earned a memorable victory against Warrington away last season we’re going back to 2011 for this week’s flashback.
Salford headed into their clash with then Super League leaders Warrington with a torrid record against the Wolves having racked up five derby defeats on the bounce – with the last being a 60-0 drubbing at The Willows – but that was to come to an end at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.
It was the Wire who were first to cross as centre Chris Bridge latched onto a kick by former Red Devil Richie Myler to score in the corner.
However, Salford soon took the lead as some quick hands from the halves allowed Sean Gleeson to bust the Warrington line and force his way over. Daniel Holdsworth converted to open up a narrow lead.
But, the back-and-forth nature of the game continued when Lee Briers dummied and sliced through a big gap in the Salford defence.
Salford turned on the style going forward following the interval scoring two tries inside four minutes. Luke Patten raced 30m to score on the backend of a Gleeson pass before Holdsworth and Patten combined to give Mark Henry an easy finish in the corner. Holdsworth’s conversion made the scores 18-10.
Warrington were chasing the game and mounting the pressure on the Salford line and Myler managed to sneak over with two minutes remaining. The conversion closed the arrears to two points but Salford held out and came away with two points.
The victory made it back-to-back wins for Salford after they overcame Wakefield a week earlier and new Coach Matt Parish was set to arrive following the victory.
The teams that day:
Warrington: Brett Hodgson, Chris Bridge, Matty Blythe, Ryan Atkins, Rhys Williams; Lee Briers, Richie Myler, Adrian Morley, Michael Monaghan, Garreth Carvell, David Solomona, Ben Westwood, Simon Grix.
Interchanges: Micky Higham, Paul Wood, Mike Cooper, Tyrone McCarthy.
Salford: Luke Patten, Mark Henry, Sean Gleeson, Stefan Ratchford, Jodie Broughton; Matty Smith, Daniel Holdsworth; Ray Cashmere, Wayne Godwin, Ryan Boyle, Luke Adamson, Chris Nero, Vinnie Anderson.
Interchanges: Lee Jewitt, Iafeta Palea’aesina, Adam Sidlow, Adam Neal.
