McRae: “Players Didn’t Handle Occasion”

Reds’ Head Coach Shaun McRae came away disappointed with the performance after his Salford side put their recent good form behind them and turned in an error-strewn performance in the Carnegie Challenge Cup Quarter Final on Friday night to end their hopes of Wembley for another season.

“With a 55% completion rate in the second half you would struggle to win the toss,” he said. “It was really poor. It put us under pressure. I suspect we spent 80% of the game inside our own 40 and with that you just can’t beat a side like Wigan.

With a 55% completion rate in the second half you would struggle to win the toss

“They are going to wear you down. I thought we did well to hang on for as long as we did. Some of what we did was self-inflicted. It was a big occasion for a lot of our players and I’m just not convinced we handled it like I thought we could. We’re back here next Friday and I hope we’ve learned things from tonight.”

Wigan Warriors 28-6 Salford City Reds (CCCQF)

Salford City Reds assault on the Challenge Cup petered out disappointingly as Wigan Warriors ran out comfortable Quarter Final victors.

The Reds were still in contention at half time but ultimately a Pat Richards hat-trick and a brace from Gareth Hock proved far to much with Luke Adamson scoring the only try for the Reds.

Match Report

Wigan remained on course for Wembley after a hat-trick of tries from winger Pat Richards enabled them to see off plucky Salford in the first Carnegie Challenge Cup quarter-final.

The Warriors led only 10-6 at half-time after struggling to transform their obvious superiority onto the scoreboard but Richards’ decisive finishing in the second half saw them through to Sunday’s semi-final draw.

Wigan made the perfect start when second rower Gareth Hock took Thomas Leuluai’s pass and sidestepped full-back John Wilshere for the game’s first try after just two minutes.

Richards kicked the first of four goals and the Warriors almost scored again when centre George Carmont forced his way to the line only to lose control of the ball.

But Salford, who were looking for a second major scalp after knocking out last year’s runners-up Hull in round four, withstood the early pressure and equalised from their first meaningful attack.

An offload from the tackle by prop Ray Cashmere enabled Richie Myler to shift the ball wide and second rower Luke Adamson took an inside return pass from Jordan Turner to touch down for a try converted by Wilshere.

The prodigiously-talented Myler was a constant threat to the Warriors but the Reds lacked the quality of their opponents’ kicking game and were unable to maintain any sort of momentum on attack.

Wigan coach Brian Noble demanded big stints from front rowers Andy Coley, Iafeta Paleaaesina and Paul Prescott in the absence of Stuart Fielden through suspension and they did not let him down.

Their powerful thrusts set up the position for Carmont to get Richards over at the corner for a 26th-minute try and the visitors’ defence lived dangerously throughout the second quarter.

Stand-off Sam Tomkins ruined another break by Hock with a knock-on and Richards dropped Carmont’s pass with the line beconing.

Salford were the first to threaten in the second half, courtesy of the boots of Mark Henry and Stefan Ratchford, who both hacked the ball towards the Wigan line, and the home side were grateful to scramble the ball dead.

The Warriors were also grateful to the slender Sam Tomkins after he somehow bundled powerful Salford centre Willie Talau into touch close to their own line.

But Wigan always looked the more dangerous side with ball in hand and, after Richards had edged them further in front with a penalty on 50 minutes, they struck with a decisive third try.

Leuluai and Sean O’Loughlin worked the ball out to their favoured left flank and Carmont sent Richards over for his second try to put his side 16-6 ahead.

Salford could not get their hands on the ball as they were forced into desperate defence.

They managed to prevent substitute hooker Michael McIlorum grounding the ball when he reached the line but there was no stopping Richards after 70 minutes as he completed his second hat-trick for the club.

As the Warriors kept up the pressure, Sam Tomkins had a try disallowed for a double movement before Hock twisted and turned his way over for his second try

Facts & Figures

Wigan: Phelps, Roberts, Gleeson, Carmont, Richards, S. Tomkins, Leuluai, Coley, Riddell, Prescott, Hock, Bailey, O’Loughlin. Replacements: Paleaaesina, J. Tomkins, Hansen, McIlorum.

Salford: Wilshere, Littler, Turner, Talau, Henry, Ratchford, Myler, Cashmere, Alker, Stapleton, Adamson, Parker, Swain. Replacements: Sibbit, Leuluai, Paul, Jewitt.

Referee: T Alibert (Toulouse)

Relive The Best Game of 1996

Cast your mind back to February 1996 and the famous Salford win over Wigan in the Challenge Cup at The Willows. As the Reds head to the JJB tonight to attempt to repeat the feat, we thought you might want to see the highlights from that famous day in all their glory.

Watch out for current Assistant Coach Scott Naylor blitzing the line of his former club and see how a packed Willows reacted to a historic win on a memorable afternoon in the club’s history as they ended the Warriors eight-year dominance of the competition.

We’ll see you all at the JJB this evening!

To relive 1996 highlights on Youtube, click the video link below.

Unprecendented Demand For Cup Tickets

Salford City Reds are on course to sell more tickets than ever before, easily breaking their record for a Super League or Challenge Cup game ahead of Friday night’s Quarter Final clash with Wigan Warriors at the JJB (ko 8pm).

Demand for tickets has been extremely high and the Reds have had to get extra tickets from Wigan to satisfy fans looking to take their place ahead of the big game.

Reds’ Communcations Manager Paul McNally said: “Considering the game is not all ticket we have seen unprecedented demand for tickets for the Quarter Final. Our fans have come out in force and we’re going to have nothing if not a massive party atmosphere there tomorrow. As a club it is a huge night for us, to have achieved what we have so far this season already has really started to make the people of Salford sit up and take notice and tomorrow night can only help that.”

Reds’ Captain Malcolm Alker said: “The way our fans have reacted to us in recent weeks has been nothing short of fantastic. We already know they are going to be there and making a racket tomorrow night and that will give us a real boost. We have trained well and hard, preparation has gone to plan and we are going there believing a semi-final place is possible.”

Reds’ fans have until 2.30pm on Friday to purchase their tickets at the discounted price fromt he Club Shop. Tickets on the night at the JJB will be £2 more, but payment can be made on the turnstile.

Junior season ticket holders can present Away Voucher C on the turnstile to gain free entry into the game.

With the weather forecast to be sunny with a balmy maximum temperature of 25 degrees the Reds are hoping for a large walk-up on the evening to boost what they have sold already, and are looking for their fans to outsing the Wigan contingent throughout and be the Reds 18th man on the night.

We’ll see you at the JJB!

Stef’s Phone Keeps On Ringing

It’s always the way, the big games come up and suddenly you are everybody’s best friend. It’s no exception for 20-year-old Stefan Ratchford as he prepares to go into the first Carnegie Challenge Cup Quarter Final of his career against Wigan Warriors on Friday.

“My phone’s not stopped ringing to be honest -- it’s between journalists and people asking me if I can get them free tickets who’s called the most!”, he said.

Jeremy is a quality player and it’s nice for Shaun to have that headache. If Shaun says I’m on the wing, that’s where I’m playing

“Even though all the family are from Wigan, they’ll be screaming for the Reds on the night. I’m trying not to think about playing at Wembley or even the semi-final too much because there is such a lot of work to do first, but it would be brilliant to get there.”

After four games at stand-off Head Coach Shaun McRae now has one of his biggest selection problems since taking over at The Willows with Kiwi stand-off Jeremy Smith fit for action again and Stefan is philosophical about where he may play at the JJB.

“Jeremy is a quality player and it’s nice for Shaun to have that headache. If Shaun says I’m on the wing, that’s where I’m playing,” he said.

“Not many people thought we would get this far but, if we win this game, anything can happen in a semi-final. Two years ago Catalans got through and beat Wigan and had a good day out at Wembley.

“If we can get through we will have done it the hard way so we’d deserve it.”

To see the full interview with Stefan Ratchford on RedPlanetTV, click the video link below.

Bulls Hit For Six – The Geek Checks It Out

Luke Adamson ripped it up with a stunning Man of the Match performance, Mark Henry raced in for a 70m try and the Reds blitzed the Bulls in a devastating 12 minute period. Get the lowdown on all the stats and how it happened with LeagueGeek.

As ever after each game we update the stats for kicking, ball-carrying and tackling, not to mention individual game-specific stats direct from the field of play.

From Geeky’s page (accessible from the INFO section of the menubar or from the links on the right hand side of most pages) you can now access stats on each game played so far, as well as match reports and video highlights from the games so if you want to re-live the fantastic treble of Hull FC, Warrington and Leeds Rhinos, or even now from the back-to-back wins over Huddersfield and Bradford then head over there and check out the highlights.

Most games for the season now have video highlights and all have OPTA charts jam-packed full of data so if you missed anything, or just want to re-live a particular moment, then you know where to click.

See you next week with more stats.

Click HERE for LeagueGeek

Alker Looks To The Spirit Of ‘96

Salford captain Malcolm Alker will be calling on the spirit of ’96 when the City Reds travel to Wigan for Friday’s Carnegie Challenge Cup quarter final.

A young Alker watched on from the sidelines in 1996 when Salford ended the Warriors’ eight-year winning streak by beating them 26-16.

It was the first time Wigan had lost in the Challenge Cup since 1987 and proved to be one of the most memorable rugby league moments of the nineties.

Alker said: “I remember that day pretty well. Andy Gregory was coach and I was part of the squad but I didn’t play on the day.

“We went in as massive underdogs but we believed that we could do it. It was a brilliant day and one that the club will always remember. Hopefully we can repeat that this weekend and get another famous win. It’s just a matter of turning up and performing on the day.”

Now aged 30, Alker joined the Reds from amateur club Wigan St Pats in 1995. He has spent his whole career at The Willows and is aiming to break new ground on Friday – a Salford victory would give him a first taste of Challenge Cup semi final action.

Alker said: “Wigan are going to have all guns blazing. They’ll have a point to prove after last week’s game at Warrington and then there’s also the reputation they have got with the Carnegie Challenge Cup.

“They’ll want to maintain that reputation, but we’ve got a lot of players that are aiming for the semi finals. I haven’t experienced a Challenge Cup semi final myself and it would be very fantastic if we could get there.

“First of all we’ve got to get through the Wigan game, but then anything can happen in semi finals. It would be a massive achievement after the start to the season we had.

“We’ve proven wrong most of the pundits that were writing us off, saying we might only win two games all year. We’ve just got to deliver on the day.”

And Alker is adamant that there will be no split loyalties on Friday, despite his Wigan-supporting childhood.

He said: “I grew up in Wigan and I went to Wembley watching them a couple of times but I’m now firmly an adopted Salfordian. My wife’s from Salford, my children have been raised here and I’ve been lucky enough to play for this fantastic club for my entire career.”

After initially finding it difficult to readjust back to life in the engage Super League, Salford have found their form recently and have beaten Huddersfield and Bradford in successive weeks.

Alker said: “It takes time to find out what formula works for the new set of players and it probably took up until the Huddersfield game for us to pin down exactly what worked for us. We have to do all the little things well and the most consistent teams in Super League are the ones that repeat their own formula over and over again.”

Tickets for this year’s Carnegie Challenge Cup Final at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 29 August are still available with prices starting from £21.

For more information or to purchase tickets please call 0871 226 13 13 or visit www.rugbyleaguetickets.co.uk

To visit the Carnegie Challenge Cup website please click on www.thechallengecup.com

Did You Scoop The Lottery (27/5/09)

Now’s the time to find out if you are one of this week’s big winners on the Reds’ Golden Bond lottery. Each week you could win up to £10000 for a single £1 stake…think of how you could spend that money this Summer. Read more

Service Area Develop Local Talent

Salford Service Area in partnership with Salford City Reds Foundation has delivered two days of Skills sessions to children between the ages of 12 and 15. Read more

Littler Set To Crash Through 150 Barrier

Reds’ stalwart Stuart Littler is set to crash past an amazing milestone in the Challenge Cup Quarter Final at the JJB on Friday evening (8pm).

Littler – in his Testimonial year will make his 150th consecutive appearance for the Salford club if chosen in an astounding run that goes back to July 2004.

Since then Littler has made 135 starts and 14 appearances from the subs bench in a career that started for Salford against Leeds Rhinos in Gateshead in 1998, in a run that will quite possibly never be bettered due to the nature of the modern game.

The record means a lot, especially because it was held by such a legend as David Watkins. To be mentioned in the same breath as him is an honour

“The record means a lot, especially because it was held by such a legend as David Watkins,” Stuart said. “To be mentioned in the same breath as him is an honour. The last 12 years I’ve had at Salford seem to have flown by. Each time my contract has been up, I’ve been lucky enough to get it renewed. I’ve made a lot of friends that I’ll take into later life,” he concluded.

Meanwhile, Shaun McRae has made just one change to his 19-Man squad bringing in the fit-again Craig Stapleton for the cup-tied Darrell Goulding. Kiwi Jeremy Smith is also fit to play and Mcrae will now face a selection headache at half-back with youngster Stefan Ratchford having deputised well in the three games Smith has been absent.

Reds 19 Man Squad to face Wigan Warriors in the Carnegie Challenge Cup:
Wilshere, Talau, Henry, Smith, Myler, Sibbit, Cashmere, Alker, Stapleton, Parker, Swain, Turner, Littler, Leuluai, Paul, Ratchford, Adamson, Jewitt, Thornley

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