Salford Red Devils can confirm the loan signings of Greg Burke and Ed Chamberlain from Widnes Vikings with Weller Hauraki heading to the Select Security Stadium as part of the deal.
Chamberlain recently featured in the Rugby League World Cup for Ireland while Burke came through the ranks at Wigan Warriors. Hauraki – who has spent three full seasons with the Red Devils – will head the other way in the swap deal.
Salford Red Devils Head Coach Ian Watson said: “It’s great that we’ve been able to bring two new players into the side at this crucial juncture of the 2018 Betfred Super League season.
“Ed [Chamberlain] is an outside back which is an area we have been short in this season and his arrival will only stiffen up the competition within the outside backs. Ed’s recent exploits in the Betfred Super League and at an international level with Ireland in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup have developed him into a real prospect.
“Greg [Burke] is a player who has competed at the highest level when coming through the ranks at Wigan Warriors and will add much-needed steel to our forward pack. He has led Widnes’ pack over the last few seasons in a dominant and intimidating fashion.
“Weller [Hauraki] has been an important member of our squad over the past few seasons and has proven to be an asset both on and off the field. All the players and staff would like to wish him all the best for the future.
“The opportunity which has arisen has seen us gain two young British players in exchange for Weller and this is a massive lift to our squad.
Director of Rugby and Operations Ian Blease said: “We’re delighted to get both Greg and Ed in for the remainder of the 2018 Betfred Super League season.
“We’ve been working hard behind the scenes to bring some new faces into the Club and unfortunately been pipped at the post for a few players so to bring both Greg and Ed in is a massive boost for us.
“It’s important to keep things fresh and encourage competition for places within the first team squad and I believe both will improve Ian Watson’s options going into the business end of the season.
“Weller has been a fantastic servant and one of our standout quota players over the last few seasons and we’d like to wish him the best of luck for the rest of the 2018 season.”
Full interviews with Greg Burke and Ed Chamberlain will be on the Club website and Salford Red Devils TV in the coming days.
Tag: Weller Hauraki
Kingsland Drinks Try of the Month | May 2018
Salford Red Devils scored some impressive tries in May 2018 and it’s now time for YOU to vote for YOUR favourite in the latest Kingsland Drinks Try of the Month competition.
The nominees are:
Niall Evalds vs Leigh Centurions – Niall Evalds opened the scoring in the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup sixth round tie at the Leigh Sports Village after jinking his way over from close-range.
Weller Hauraki vs Catalans Dragons – Club Captain Weller Hauraki got the Red Devils off to a great start at the Dacia Magic Weekend following some clever link-up play with Mark Flanagan.
Niall Evalds vs Huddersfield Giants – Fullback Niall Evalds beat Jordan Rankin to the ball and pulled off a stunning finish on the back of an inch-perfect kick from Derrell Olpherts.
Junior Sa’u vs Huddersfield Giants – The game may have been settled but it didn’t stop Junior Sa’u knocking off three Giants defenders to score in the closing stages.
You can watch all the tries below and head over to our Twitter – @SalfordDevils – to vote!
Sponsor | PH Services invites fans to showroom opening
Proud Salford Red Devils fan and sponsor Paul Hancock is inviting all fellow supporters to the opening of his new Kitchen and Bathroom showroom on Saturday 26th May, 9am-4pm.
There will also be an offer to all Salford Red Devils supporters to receive a discount on the day of the showroom opening. There will also be first team players in attendance for you to meet, take pictures with and get autographs from.
Paul said: “I’ve been a Salford Red Devils supporter for over 25 years now.
“In 2007, I became involved in a bigger role by sponsoring the Club through my Plumbing and Installation Business – PH Services.
“I then opened Pete’s Plumbing and Bathroom showrooms just over two years ago now and my newest venture is my new Kitchen and Bathroom showroom which I’m extremely excited to open tomorrow.
“Fans will be able to enjoy a light refreshment or a glass of prosecco and have a good nosey at all the fantastic stuff I have on offer.
“Hopefully, many of you will come and take a look around and support me in my newest venture following a Salford victory this evening against Huddersfield.”
PH Services proudly sponsor Club Captain Weller Hauraki while hooker Kriss Brining is sponsored by Pete’s Plumbing.
Paul through both business’ also currently holds a corporate box to watch every Salford Red Devils home game from and we’d like to thank him for his continued support and wish him all the best with his newest venture.
Match Report | Salford Red Devils 12-26 Catalans Dragons
Salford Red Devils succumbed to defeat at the Dacia Magic Weekend as former Red Devil Jodie Broughton’s hat-trick helped the Catalans Dragons on their way to a deserved 26-12 triumph at St James’ Park.
Alongside Broughton’s treble, scores from Benjamin Garcia, Julien Bousquet plus three goals from Tony Gigot ensured the French side secured a pivotal victory at the weekend extravaganza.
The Red Devils flew out of the blocks and found their way over the line with just three minutes on the clock.
Kris Welham cleverly flicked Robert Lui’s lofted cross-field kick into the path of the onrushing Derrell Olpherts who forced himself over. However, the score was chalked off due to offside in the build-up.
Salford weren’t to be denied for long though as Weller Hauraki broke forward and flicked inside to Mark Flanagan, the latter then returned the ball after producing a terrific offload which forged an opening for second-rower Hauraki to cross over under the sticks.
Lui then comfortably landed the resulting conversion to extend the lead to 6 points but Salford’s efforts were undone less than five minutes later as Benjamin Garcia pierced through the Reds backline before powering over – although Josh Drinkwater did miss the subsequent goal.
Garcia’s score seemingly spurred the Dragons on and the French side soon forged another point scoring opportunity as George Griffin conceded a penalty through an interference. Catalans opted to kick for two, but Tony Gigot was unable to convert the goal despite it appearing harder to miss.
Catalans soon turned the game on its head when Logan Tomkins spilled Gigot’s grubber in-goal before Julien Bousquet pounced onto the loose ball to touch down before Gigot calmly added the extras.
Ian Watson’s men were struggling to build any momentum at this point and were fortunate not to have suffered another score just a minute later as Garcia found his way over again but luckily for Salford, the forward was unable to successfully ground the ball.
Catalans headed in at the break with a 10-6 lead and they picked up where they left off after the break as former Red Devil Jodie Broughton latched onto a loose ball before jinking past Niall Evalds to stretch over the whitewash.
Gigot was unable to add the extras, but that was where Salford’s luck ran out as Broughton claimed his second try of the contest in style.
Lewis Tierney found a gap and produced a sensational pass to allow Broughton to dart 40m and score despite the best efforts of Lui and Jack Littlejohn.
Things worsened for the Red Devils when Broughton completed his hat-trick a minute later. After Josh Drinkwater went close seconds prior, Gigot delivered a looping kick to allow the winger to cross over.
Kris Welham exited the field after picking up an injury and the Dragons extended their lead immediately afterwards as Gigot added his third goal to inflict further misery upon the Salford players.
Salford did claim a consolation try though, Littlejohn’s short ball found its way to George Griffin who crossed over the line unchallenged. Lui added the extras to make the scoreline more respectable.
Salford Lineup: Evalds, Johnson, Welham, Sa’u, Olpherts, Lui, Littlejohn, Kopczak, Tomkins, Mossop, Griffin, Hauraki, Flanagan.
Interchanges: Tasi, Murray, Wood, McCarthy.
Catalans Lineup: Gigot, Broughton, Mead, Williame, Tierney, Bird, Drinkwater, Simon, McIlorum, Moa, Julien, Garcia, Casty.
Interchanges: Anderson, Bousquet, Maria, Baiteri.
Salford Scorers: Tries- Hauraki (9’), Griffin (75’) | Goals- Lui (10’, 76’
Catalans Scorers: Tries- Garcia (20’), Bousquet (23’), Broughton (49’, 61’, 63’) | Goals- (Gigot 24’, 62’, 72’)
Man of the Match: Niall Evalds.
Referee: Gareth Hewer. Touch Judges: M. Craven & R. Thompson. Video Referee: Robert Hicks.
Stat Pack | Wigan Warriors 30-0 Salford Red Devils
It was a tough evening for the Red Devils at the DW Stadium but there were still some interesting stats behind the result and we take a look in this week’s ‘Stat Pack’.
Derrell Olpherts
He was one of the three players mentioned in this week’s three talking points, but fullback Derrell Olpherts is also this week’s ‘Player in Focus’.
Olpherts had to step into the fullback role in place of an unavailable Niall Evalds and put together some impressive stats at the DW Stadium.
The former Newcastle Thunder man amounted 19 carries – more than any other Red Devil on the evening. While a percentage of these were in kick returns, Olpherts also brought the ball out from his own line with the rest of the backs on numerous occasions.
Olpherts made 180 metres from his 19 carries making him the sides biggest metre-maker on the evening also averaging 9.5 metres per carry. The fullback made nine tackles including bringing down Tom Davies in the late stages of the game.
The 26-year-old was also confident fielding kicks with six kick collections from a possible six.
Defensive shifts
With Logan Tomkins the only hooker in the Salford side last night, the former Wigan Warriors man had to play for almost a full 80 minutes before leaving for a concussion assessment in the closing stages.
Tomkins racked up a mammoth 51 tackles which was 15 more than any other Red Devil on the field. As always, Tomkins also had the most passes for Salford with 92.
Tyrone McCarthy – who is consistently one of the highest tacklers – made 36 and was equal with youngster Daniel Murray who put in another fantastic Betfred Super League performance.
Weller Hauraki and Craig Kopczak also made 30 tackles apiece.
Overall stats
Head Coach Ian Watson eluded to his sides lack of possession and amount of defence being a major factor in last night’s game against Wigan and that can be seen in the post-match stats.
Wigan had 15 more sets than Salford throughout the 80 minutes completing 37 of their 47. The Red Devils completed 23 of their 29. This was also mirrored in the amount of play-the-balls with the Warriors having 154 compared to Salford’s 118. Salford spent 11 minutes less in possession than the hosts.
The penalty count was relatively even with Salford conceding seven to Wigan’s eight. The error count was also similar with Wigan totalling six errors to Salford’s eight.
Kingsland Drinks Try of the Month | April 2018 – Jake Bibby
Salford Red Devils winger Jake Bibby was the winner of April’s Kingsland Drinks ‘Try of the Month’ competition after he finished a superb off-the-cuff team try at Huddersfield.
The try began with Weller Hauraki and Rob Lui linking up to find Lama Tasi however, Tasi wasn’t taking the tackle offloading back to Lui.
The halfback found Ben Nakubuwai, who similarly wasn’t happy going to ground and gave the ball to Mark Flanagan who pulled off a lovely one-handed catch.
Hauraki eventually found himself back in possession and threw a sublime inside dummy to Kris Welham before a ‘out of the back door’ offload to Bibby out wide who finished in style.
But, why just read about the try when you can watch it here:
Squad | Ian Watson could name two debutants against Wigan
Head Coach Ian Watson has named his 19-man squad for Friday’s trip to the DW Stadium to face Wigan Warriors.
Off-season additions Levy Nzoungou and Gavin Bennion could both be in line to make their competitive debuts for the Red Devils following successful spells on loan.
Club Captain Weller Hauraki returns to the squad alongside another one of the off-season newcomers Ben Nakubuwai who – before last weekend – had played 11 consecutive fixtures in 2018.
Daniel Murray could also be set to return to the team off the back of a new two-year deal with the Club.
Mark Flanagan, Lee Mossop, and Josh Jones are the forwards who miss out while Rob Lui is still recovering from a minor injury picked up in the recent victory over Wakefield.
Niall Evalds is ruled out due to failing a concussion assessment in last weekend’s defeat against St Helens.
Manu Vatuvei and Kriss Brining remained sidelined with the latter due to undergo surgery in the coming days.
The full 19-man squad can be seen below:
Squad | Ian Watson names his 19-man squad to face St Helens on Thursday
Head Coach Ian Watson has named his 19-man squad as the Salford Red Devils look to make it three successive victories as they host St Helens.
Lee Mossop is available for selection for Thursday’s game after missing the win over Wakefield after failing a concussion assessment the week prior against Huddersfield. Lama Tasi also returns to the squad for after overcoming an illness that kept him out of the victory last week against Trinity.
Jake Shorrocks could be set to start for Ian Watson’s side as Rob Lui is sidelined after picking up a calf injury last Friday. Weller Hauraki also remains sidelined.
Forward quartet Luke Burgess, George Griffin, Daniel Murray and Tyrone McCarthy may all retain their places in the side after returning to action in the dominant victory over Wakefield.
Here is the full 19-man squad:
Three talking points | Huddersfield Giants 12-30 Salford Red Devils
Salford earned an impressive 12-30 victory over Huddersfield – their fifth consecutive away win at the John Smith’s Stadium – and we take a look at three talking points from the game.
Away victory
Salford’s 12-30 victory over Huddersfield at the John Smith’s Stadium marked their first win on the road for almost ten months and what a victory it was!
A double from Jake Bibby alongside tries from Mark Flanagan, Ben Nakubuwai and Weller Hauraki saw the Red Devils earn a much-needed victory. Rob Lui was on form with the boot kicking five goals.
The Red Devils have come close to winning away from home this season with narrow losses at the likes of Wakefield Trinity and Widnes Vikings but with an away win under their belts in 2018, Ian Watson’s men will be looking to kick on in the coming weeks both on their travels and at the The Salford Stadium.
Jake Bibby
The winger crossed for two late tries to round off a hard-fought victory at the John Smith’s Stadium and was one of the standout performers for the Red Devils.
Both of Bibby’s scores came when the game already looked to be won but the winger finished in fantastic fashion to help Salford end the game in style.
However, it wasn’t just in attack where the youngster impressed. Innes Senior crossed for the Giants, but Bibby has his number after that twice stopping the Huddersfield winger from scoring in the corner.
Dominance
Salford dominated the game for large periods earning plenty of penalties on the back of solid running and quick play-the-balls.
Once again, the forwards matched the likes of Ukuma Ta’ai and Sebastine Ikahihifo while the outside backs were consistent bringing the ball from deep inside the Salford half.
The Red Devils also managed the game very well in the closing stages when Huddersfield looked like they may edge their way back into it which eventually paid dividend as it was Ian Watson’s men who ran away with it.
Match Report | Huddersfield Giants 12-30 Salford Red Devils
Salford Red Devils cruised to their first Betfred Super League away victory of the season with a resounding 30-12 victory over Huddersfield Giants at the John Smith’s Stadium.
Jake Bibby’s double along with further scores from Mark Flanagan, Ben Nakubuwai and Weller Hauraki ensured The Red Devils ran out deserved winners to earn a crucial two points in their bid to secure a place in the lucrative Super 8s.
Salford made a bright start to the contest and were unfortunate not to have scored in the fourth minute when Robert Lui’s forty-twenty forged a golden try-scoring opportunity – but Lui ultimately knocked the ball on to bring an end to the move.
The Red Devils’ perseverance paid dividends in the 13th minute when Mark Flanagan produced an exquisite step before diving past several Huddersfield defenders to cross over under the posts – Lui then added the extras to give Salford a 6 point lead.
Flanagan’s score seemed to instill some confidence into the Salford ranks and they were over again just two minutes later when some quick hands from Josh Jones and Flanagan allowed Ben Nakubuwai to burst into a huge gap in the Giants’ backline before powering over to cap off a fine move – Lui again converted the resulting goal.
Salford were running riot by this point and came close to scoring several minutes later. First, a clever move from Lui almost resulted in Niall Evalds touching down but the full-back slipped at the crucial moment before Junior Sa’u narrowly failed to capitalise on the loose ball from Jack Littlejohn’s cross-field kick just seconds later.
However, the hosts managed to swing the momentum in their favour and crossed over midway through the half when some slick passes from Danny Brough and Aaron Murphy provided Innes Senior with the opportunity to score – one which the young winger duly took after holding off Jake Bibby before diving over in the corner. Brough then landed the subsequent conversion to reduce the deficit to six points.
Huddersfield were reluctant to let Salford out of their half after Senior’s score and came close to scoring on three separate occasions after forcing The Reds into two goal-line drop outs before Matty English was held up thanks to a last ditch effort from Lama Tasi.
Salford were under the cosh and almost conceded once again as Senior looked destined to score in the left-hand corner before flicking the ball inside but the combined defensive efforts of Bibby and Weller Hauraki forced the winger and loose ball into touch.
After the interval, The Red Devils claimed the first points of the half when the hosts were penalised for an incorrect play-the-ball – Salford opted to kick at goal and Lui successfully converted the resulting goal in front of the sticks to give Salford an 8 point lead.
Salford were over again minutes later when Lui picked out the onrushing Hauraki who pierced through the Huddersfield line before crossing the whitewash, Lui then converted the resulting goal to take Salford up to the 20 point mark.
Despite the setback the hosts regrouped and clawed their way back into the contest when former Salford man Lee Gaskell’s short ball allowed Oliver Roberts to cross over unchallenged from close-range – Brough then added the extras.
A combination of individual errors and a number of excellent defensive displays resulted in a fairly open second period but the turning point of the half arrived in the final ten when Ukuma Ta’ai hit Flanagan with a late shot – Lui then landed the resulting goal from 32m out to extend the visitors’ lead to 10 points.
Things quickly went from bad to worse for The Giants when star-man Brough was sent off in the 76th minute for his verbal misconduct towards Referee James Child.
Salford crossed over again with three minutes left on the clock when Bibby emphatically finished off a free-flowing move in the right-hand corner after some sublime play from Lui and Kris Welham – however on this occasion Lui was unable to convert the resulting goal.
However, The Red Devils weren’t finished there as Weller Hauraki produced an excellent dummy before flicking the ball to Bibby who dived over for his second of the day as Salford cruised to victory.
Huddersfield Lineup: Rankin, McIntosh, Turner, Murphy, Senior, Gaskell, Brough, Ikahihifo, Leeming, Clough, Roberts, Ta’ai, Smith. Interchanges: Hinchcliffe, Walne, English, Mellor.
Salford Lineup: Evalds, Bibby, Sa’u, Welham, Johnson, Lui, Littlejohn, Nakubuwai, Tomkins, Mossop, Hauraki, Jones, Flanagan. Interchanges: Tasi, Kopczak, Lannon, Wood.
Huddersfield Scorers: Tries- Senior (23’), Roberts (55’) | Goals- Brough (24’, 56’
Salford Scorers: Tries- Flanagan (13’), Nakubuwai (15’), Hauraki (52’), Bibby (77’, 79’) | Goals- Lui (13’, 16’, 44’, 52’, 71’)
Man of the Match: Robert Lui
Referee: James Child Touch Judges: M Craven & D Bowmer
Attendance: 4,385
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