Academy Head Coach, Danny Barton is hoping his players can ‘get into the rhythm’ of a professional mindset as the season progresses.
His side were heavily beaten by Huddersfield Giants this afternoon, but there were moments to celebrate for Ralf Roberts, Finlay Walker and Jayden Tyson – the Red Devils’ try scorers.
It was our Academy’s first competitive outing since the Club received its license last year and marks another positive step forward for the pathways system at Salford.
Speaking post-match, Barton admits the physical dominance of the Giants’ team got on top in the end and will teach his players some valuable lessons.
“Obviously in the back of my mind I know that’s the case where they’ve been together longer and you can see physically – if you look at them, then look at us – you can tell they’ve been in systems, the legs and core, things like that,” he began.
“I think the lads can handle it – it’s just a learning curve, a steep one. It’s not just learning to be better on the field, it’s learning between the ears as well – that’s one of the biggest challenges they’ve got coming from an amateur mindset that they’re trying to transfer into a professional one now.
“That’s not going to happen overnight, it’s going to take a few games to get into that rhythm, this standard of rugby league. It’s a starting point and we’ll just look to kick-on from here now.
“The only people we need to look at is ourselves and reflect on that, see where we can go next game and see where we can improve. It can only be small improvements, but that’s what we’re looking for.”
Tap the video above to watch our full post-match chat with Danny…
