Salford Red Devils v Hull KR match report

After a two week break Salford were back in action at the AJ Bell Stadium as they welcomed newly promoted Hull kr. 

After two defeats to Wigan and Wakefield Ian Watson and his players knew how important it was to get the win. The Robins arrived in confident mood after steady improvement in there opening fixtures. 

A first round home defeat to Wakefield was followed by a battling display at Elland road against champions Leeds Rhinos which they were unlucky to lose. Last week a hard fought win at Craven Park against Catalan Dragons 23-4 showed Tim Sheens side will play with plenty of grit and determination this season. 

Another bitterly cold night welcomed both sides to the pitch as summer rugby still seemed a few months away. 

Jack Littlejohn came up with an early mistake kicking out on the full to hand Hull KR the initiative. The Robins grabbed the first try moments later from Thomas Mimms as Salford failed to deal with a neat kick in to the in goal.

Shortly after Salford responded, Jack Littlejohn’s kick in to the in goal area this time causing panic for the Rovers defence. Gareth O Brien was first to pounce, his conversion levelled the score at 6-6.

Junior Sau who was a menace in attack and defence all night nudged Salford in front after some nice work from Littlejohn. O Brien again on the button with the conversion 12-6.

O Brien then added a penalty goal before Robert Lui threw a wonderful pass to centre Kris Welham who kept his nerve to send young Jake Bibby in at the corner. O Brien just dragged the kick wide but Salford were well in the driving seat 18-6 at half time.

It was the perfect start to the second half when Robert Lui raced in for a try inside the first minute. O Brien adding the goal 24-6.

Rovers continued to battle with ex Red Devil Tommy Lee working over time in the middle along with impressive young half back Chris Atkin. O Brien added another penalty 26-6 before lively Hull kr full back Adam Quinlan touched down 26-12.

Rovers joy was short lived when lovely handling from Littlejohn and O Brien sent Niall Evalds over. The exciting Evalds then grabbed his second after good strong running from Sau.

Ian Watson was delighted after the game praising his pack for another hard working display, man of the match Junior Sau was singled out for a special mention along with hard working hookers  Logan Tomkins and Josh Wood.

An excellent nights work for the Red Devil’s to get the season off the mark. Salford who seem to be growing in confidence every week of face a trip to St Helens in seven days time.

Final score Salford Red Devil’s 36 Hull Kingston Rovers 12.

Report by Paul Whiteside.

Pictures by Steve McCormick 

Salford Red Devils v Hull KR big match preview

Salford Red Devils vs Hull Kingston Rovers

Super League – Friday 23rd Feb – AJ Bell Stadium – KO 8:00PM

Check out Richard Lowes big match preview here looking forward to Friday.

Salford are back at home this week, playing freshly promoted Hull KR. The Red Devils will be keen to pick up their first 2 points of the season against a combative looking Robin’s side.

It’s imperative that Ian Watson’s side turn in a performance to settle the home supporter’s down and to ensure that we get some points on the board. The next 2 games are away fixtures against St Helens and Castleford respectively, then a tricky home game against Hull FC.

Meanwhile in East Hull, the Red and Whites have gained 2 points from their first 3 Super League games. Losing out at home to Leeds in the season opener, then away to Wakefield Trinity, before a more encouraging performance and subsequent victory in the South of France against Catalan Dragons.

Both teams have now named their 19 men squads, so let’s run down the key head to head’s that could well decide where the 2 points end up.

Props: Ben Nakubuwai vs Mose Masoe 

“Big Ben” has settled well to life with the Red Devils and made an impressive debut off the bench against Wakefield 2 weeks ago. He will almost certainly start again from the bench, this time against Hull and will be hoping he can once again make in-roads with his straight running and combative tackling.

Imposing Samoan international, Mose Masoe will be keen to ensure he and his team get on the front foot from the off. Being the main prop in the Hull KR line up, Masoe will be keen to get back to the form of 2014 when he was in the St Helens line up and won the Grand Final.

Hooker: Josh Wood vs Shaun Lunt 

Youngster Josh Wood is once again named in the 19 and has caught the eye already with a number of big hits on opposition props. Despite his relatively slight frame, he’s clearly added bulk to his skill set and is not afraid to put his body on the line for the cause. His distribution from dummy half has also improved greatly during the close season and Ian Watson has clearly a lot of faith in him. Let’s hope some of it can be repaid this Friday.

Shaun Lunt, at the other end of his career compared with Wood, has seen multiple Challenge cup and Grand finals in his time. His quick decisions from dummy half to spot a pass or take on the opposition if they are in trouble has been a great asset of his over the years and the Hull KR fans will be hoping he can repeat this during Saturday’s game.

Halves: Rob Lui v Maurice Blair

Game management will be a key factor in deciding where the 2 points end up on Friday evening and in Rob Lui, Salford have an exceptionally accomplished ball playing stand-off. Coach Watson will be hoping that he can take the mantle from his old half partner, Michael Dobson and control the game from the off.

Seasoned professional, Maurice Blair has spent the last two seasons at Hull KR. The 33-year-old Aussie Stand-off was named player of the year last season for the club in the Championship and will clearly be keen to bring that form with him into the Super League during this season. 

Wing: Greg Johnson v Justin Carney

Greg Johnson has been named in the squad this week after missing the last game against Wakefield. His powerful running out of defence will be crucial to give the Red Devils a strong platform when bringing the ball away from the try line. He needs to rediscover the form with his centres that saw him scoring freely last season and will need to keep a tight defensive line to try and stop the opposition.

The ‘tank on the flank’ Carney returns to face his former club for the first time since he was let go for foul and abusive language during the Toronto Challenge cup game. He will clearly be keen to impress against his old club. The Salford fans are painfully aware of how strong and quick Carney is when bringing the ball out of defence and it’s therefore imperative that kicks and chases are perfectly judged to him, ensuring he’s not able to get up a head of steam otherwise this could cause Salford serious problems.

With Mark Flanagan also in line for a return to the team, there should be no reason why Red Devils fans can’t feel optimistic for a victory this Friday and our first 2 points of the season.

Come on Salford!!!!

Previous matches

Form guide

Wakefield 14 Salford 12 Match Report

Hard working Salford fall just short. Paul Whiteside takes you through all the action.

After the opening round defeat to Wigan Ian Watson was looking for a response from his players. Bell Vue has not been the happiest away trip in the Super League era for Salford and after Wakefield’s victory last week the Trinity followers were in expectant mood. 

The hosts set the pace in the opening stages playing a good off load game which Salford struggled to cope with. Building pressure with drop outs and repeat sets Wakefield’s half back duo of Liam Finn and Jacob Miller began to dictate proceedings.

Scott Grix posted the first points with a nice try slicing through the Red Devil’s defence. Finn added the conversion 6-0.

Trinity were having plenty of possession particularly in good attacking positions but Salford’s goal line defence was outstanding.

Just before halftime a thrilling Wakefield break was halted, soon after a penalty followed with Finn opting to kick the two points on offer 8-0.

Salford seemed to find some composure at the start of the second half and begun to grow in confidence. After some superb drives from the powerful Craig Kopzack and good hands from Gareth O Brien, Robert Lui went blind side to dive over in the corner for a well deserved try. O Brien failed to convert 8-4.

The home supporters were becoming a little nervous as the Red Devil’s began to click into gear. Jack Littlejohn worked tirelessly at scrum half and when his clever kick paid off to give Salford a repeat set from a drop out, Niall Evalds scored in the corner to level the scores. O Brien again failed to convert. 

Thirteen minutes from time and Wakefield got a big slice of luck when Miller scored off a speculative Ryan Hampshire kick. Finn added the goal to extend the lead to 14-8.

Trinity then had a try ruled out by the video referee before Jake Bibby went close in a pulsating final ten minutes. 

With a minute remaining Kris Welham looked to have saved the day scoring out wide. 

As Gareth O Brien lined the conversion attempt up the final hooter sounded. O Brien kicked to draw the game but agonisingly for the travelling Salford faithful it drifted just wide. 

Wakefield coach Chris Chester was delighted to get the two points but admitted Salford deserved a point tonight. He knew his players had been in a real battle. 

Ian Watson was disappointed with the result but proud of the efforts his players had put in. There are plenty of positives to take forward to the crunch fixture at home to Hull Kingston Rovers in a fortnights time.

Wakefield Trinity 14 Salford 12.

Pictures by Steve McCormick 📸

Wakefield v Salford Big match preview

Wakefield Trinity vs Salford Red Devils

Super League - Friday 9th Feb – Mobile Rocket Stadium – KO 7:35PM

Salford play their second match of the Super League campaign against Wakefield Trinity on Friday evening.

Even though it’s early in the campaign, Ian Watson will see this as a must win to ensure the Red Devils season kicks into gear as early as possible. After the 12-40 defeat against Wigan last time out, the head coach will no doubt have been concentrating on firming some of the weaknesses exposed by Wigan last Friday evening.

On the other side of the Pennines, Chris Chester’s men will be keen to build on their promising start. Running out 28-6 winners against newly promoted Hull KR. It was a scrappy game by all accounts, but never-the-less, Trinity - who finished an impressive 5th after the Super 8’s in 2017 – racked up 6 tries against Rovers.

With no new injury concerns from last week and both teams having announced 19 man squads, let’s look at some key battles on the pitch where the game could be decided.

Props: Lama Tasi v David Fifita 

Two big hitters face each other on Friday night and Samoan, Lama Tasi will be hoping to get the upper hand against his Fijian opponent. The Red Devils prop had an impressive 2017 season until it was ended prematurely through injury. He looks fighting fit this season and raring to go and hopefully be able to unleash some of those big hits that Salford fans have become accustomed to.

Wakefield prop forward David Fifita also had an impressive 2017, topping the tackle busts, carries and metre making charts for his club. It’s clear therefore that the Salford pack will be well prepared to face him, but can they stop him?

Hooker: Logan Tomkins v Kyle Wood

If Logan Tomkins does make the 17 on Friday, he will be key to Salford’s tempo in the early stages of the match. It’s critical that the Red Devils start the game on the front foot and don’t get dominated around the ruck. His competitive tackling and consistently good ball distribution means he’s an almost certain starter if fit. 

Trinity Hooker, Kyle Wood has come of age in the last season. His consistently high level of performance, saw him playing every game until the last 3 of the 2017 campaign. He was rewarded for his efforts with the clubs “Man of Steel Award”. Salford will need to make sure he’s kept quiet for as long as possible, or the large Trinity pack will be able to dominate the ruck.

Centres: Junior Sa’u v Bill Tupou

There were a lot of below par performances from the Salford team against Wigan last week, Junior Sa’u however, was one of the exceptions. His big hits in defence and threatening runs were some of the bright points of an otherwise frustrating game. If he’s able to get time on the ball, Sa’u is able to unlock defences as he did time and again during last season’s campaign.

Former Kiwi international Bill Tupou was also extremely impressive during Trinity’s last campaign, crossing the whitewash 15 out of 26 appearances and creating many more for his wingers. He needs to be closely watched by his opposite number to ensure his time and space on the ball is limited. Sa’u however may have the advantage over him in a one on one Attack vs Defence.

Wing: Niall Evalds v Tom Johnstone

Niall Evalds will most likely be posted to the wing for Friday’s game, due to Greg Johnson not being in the 19-man squad. This will leave Gareth O’Brien to operate as an extra pivot at the line from fullback with Jack Littlejohn moving to scrum half. Evalds, though not his favoured position, scored from the wing against Wigan last week and has always been a solid attacking winger when called upon.

Wakefield winger Tom Johnstone has started this season in prolific form, scoring a hat-trick against Hull KR last weekend. The 22-year-old flyer, who was named Wakefield’s player of the year in 2016, started his first competitive game for over 8 months and is definitely one to keep an eye on in the game on Friday.

Let’s hope for a more positive result than last week, this Friday!!!

Come on Salford!!!!

Salford 12 Wigan 40 Match report

Another bitterly cold night at the AJ Bell Stadium saw Salford Red Devil’s open there Super League campaign against Wigan.

Salford got off to the perfect start against The Warriors when centre Kris Welham swooped over for a try to open the scoring. Gareth O Brien added the conversation 6-0. Both packs were really strong in the early stages not wanting to give much away they went at it toe to toe. Mark Flanagan was missing for Salford pulling out a few hours before kick off with a virus.

Nine minutes in and Junior Sau came up with a crunching ball and all tackle to put flying wingman Tom Davies in to touch. Moments later after Salford had lost possession Davies was in at the corner after good quick hands from his centre Dan Sarginson. Sam Tomkins missed the goal 6-4.

Wigan edged in front after Sam Tomkins neat slide rule kick into the in goal area caused havoc before centre Oliver Gildart pounced on the loose ball to score. Tomkins added the extras 6-10. The last action of the first half saw George Griffin sin binned for a dangerous tackle.

Wigan struck first in the second half as winger Davies put a speculative kick through which Frenchman Morgan Escare followed up to score. Tomkins extended the lead to 6-16. The Warriors then pulled away taking complete control of the game with tries from Liam Marshall, Escare and Gildart. 

There support play was excellent at times playing some fast flowing rugby. In particular the Wigan left edge was devastating causing Salford problems all night. Leading 6-34 Tony Clubb brushed off several defenders to score the visitors final try Tomkins added the goal 6-40. 

Niall Evalds finished well in the corner late on for Salford with Gaz O Brien kicking off the touch line.

Wigan’s pace out wide was difficult to deal with at times both there half backs Sam Powell and George Williams were on top form. 

Jack Littlejohn worked hard for Salford coming off the bench to play in the hooking role. Speaking after the game Red Devil’s coach Ian Watson was disappointed with the scoreline but pleased with the first half and how his middles performed. 

Salford face a tough trip to Wakefield next Friday.

Final score tonight Salford 12 Wigan 40.

Paul Whiteside.

Pictures by Steve McCormick 📸

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