In the most amazing of turnarounds, last Friday evening, the Salford Red Devils, with, as has become the norm, a much concocted team of loanees, young Reserves, and mere smattering of their own Super League players, in their Round 24 away Super League fixture, gave their Warrington Wolves hosts the most remarkable lesson in how to play as a team.
For that was the big difference between the two sides, with the home side struggling to form any sort of cohesion between themselves, throughout virtually the whole game.
The Red Devils, on the other hand, with that impressive first sixty-minute performance at Leigh, the week before, behind them, built on that and rose to a level of performance considerably beyond anyone’s sanest expectations.
It is easy to point fingers at the Wolves with claims of an inept performance, but in fairness, a team can only perform as well as they are allowed to do, and so magnificent was the Salford defence – particularly their goal-line defence in the opening quarter of the game – that apart from a fourth minute, individual try from Dufty, using his exceptional powers of acceleration – the hosts were held at bay for wave after wave of attack, and ebing repulsed in an almost casual manner.
Certainly, by the later stages, one felt almost fully confident the Reds’ line was not going to be breached again, and on the odd occasion when it did appear that a home try might be in the offing, the scrambling defence was always equal to the challenge, which just imbued greater and greater frustration within the Warrington ranks, supporters included.
Conversely, on attack, it was Salford who produced the plans, the structure, the initiative, and the flair with ball in hand, and as the game proceeded and their confidence in one another soared, they even threw in quite astonishing off-the-cuff plays that had the Wolves in states of near panic.
You only have to look at Salford’s first try of the second half, and the scintillating way the ball was kept alive on more than one occasion, when it looked as though they would be denied a score. There are not many other Super League teams, who with full squad and given the same conditions, could replicate anything as flamboyant as Salford did.
Underlying all of this were the qualities which teams in any sport would strive to produce – enthusiasm, commitment, energy, unity, self-belief, and trust in one another. All of these were there in abundance and carried the team through the excitements, successes, challenges, and disappointments of any sporting encounter.
It might be true that our loanees have come, initially ,to get themselves noticed and known, but that has clearly now been surpassed by their growing pride in the Salford jersey, as evidenced by their sheer exuberance in the celebration of each of the scores that went towards creating that incredible twenty-five-point total.
Within that whole-team performance were talents and contributions which were so beneficial overall. The leadership of skipper Joe Mellor, the incredible robustness of man of the match, Justin Sangare, the ever-improving touches of Nathan Connell – who even from the wing makes such telling interventions – while the organisational skills, and kicking skills, of stand-off Rowan Milnes, the attacking threat and try saving endeavours of winger Neil Tchamambe, and the defence-splitting sprints of fullback Jack Walker, are just a few of the elements that were readily evident throughout the game.
And tuning into all this was the voluminous Red Army of fans, whose constant roar of support far outmatched the occasional cheers, or even jeers, from the Warrington supporters.
The energy they generated, within both themselves and the team, cannot be overstated. When the tiring minutes of the last quarter were reached, it was the Wolves who looked the weary side, as some of their fans made early exits by the time this period was reached, while the Reds simply could and would not allow themselves to drop their intensity.
The absolute exuberance of the fans, players, coaches and staff, together with the bonding they all showed while celebrating together at the end, is one of those moments we shall all cherish for some considerable time into the future.
