Signing of the season? Joe Mellor is certainly up there.
The halfback-turned-hooker has quickly become a fan favourite with his industrious performances, growing more and more in stature every game.
Ending the campaign on seven tries, Mellor’s scoot from dummy-half became his trademark finish – making it look so effortless in its execution.
Completing a transfer from Leigh Leopards in mid-December, the 33-year-old became our final addition of the window after the signings of Nene Macdonald, Cade Cust, Ethan Ryan, Joe Shorrocks, Matty Foster, Kai Morgan and Chris Hankinson.
A lingering pre-season injury kept him sidelined right through to Round 6, where he made his debut in a Rivals Round victory over his former club.
Young hooker, Amir Bourouh was entrusted with the number nine shirt and started the season as a regular, but a slight knock gave Mellor a chance to stake his claim – one he took with both hands.
After a nervy, but ultimately successful two points against London Broncos at the Cherry Red Records Stadium, Mellor bagged his first Salford try against Warrington Wolves.
Following a nice carry from Andrew Dixon, the hooker spotted a scrambling Wire defence and scurried over to the left of the sticks.
Before the game, we caught up with him to find out how he’s settled into the new environment and what challenges there have been in his new role.
Strangely, that was Mellor’s only try until Round 18, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t a constant threat to the opposition.
From a total of 635, his average tackles per game (30.2) were only bettered by teammates, Ollie Partington (39.9) and Kallum Watkins (33) across 2024.
His danger wasn’t solely around the try line, often Mellor got Salford out of danger in yardage, deceiving the opposition and squirming through the defensive line to relieve pressure.
In Round 18 against Huddersfield Giants, despite defeat on the night, Mellor brought up a significant personal milestone of 100 career tries.
Deception around the ruck is one of Mellor’s fantastic traits, but another key pillar to his game is support play, and it was on full display when Leeds Rhinos were in town for what felt like a playoff decider.
Starting the short-side move, Mellor didn’t stand and appreciate his neat shift to Jayden Nikorima, he followed the weaving halfback to allow an easy pass back inside and a stroll over the try line – at a crucial time in the game.
A standout across August, Mellor was voted by the supporters as the Club’s Player of the Month and sat down with us to answer some of your questions.
A string of mixed results threatened to derail Salford’s momentum, but back-to-back victories in two of the three final games of the regular season really powered Salford to a playoff spot.
After finishing a lovely, free-flowing move for Salford against Hull KR the week prior, Mellor scored again against Catalans Dragons at home before a brace at Hull FC away contributed towards securing a playoff spot – and ultimately a home Eliminator clash.
The season ended in disappointing fashion against the Leopards, but the hooker was a standout performer for the Reds in an intense affair.
It was a debut season full of positives for Mellor, who will no doubt be an important player for Paul Rowley in 2025.
MELLOR’S 2024 IN NUMBERS
Appearances: 21
Tries: 7
Try Assists: 2
Line breaks: 9
Metres made: 1468
Tackle breaks: 41
Tackles: 635
ROWLEY ON MELLOR
“I like to sign rugby players, so someone who’s got rugby IQ, someone who can chuck a ball about on the street and find a way – and Joe epitomises that.
“He’s very well respected amongst the group.”
