Salford Red Devils kept their hopes of a top four finish alive as they earned their first Super 8s victory with a dominant 52-14 victory over Huddersfield.
Ian Watson’s men raced into a 30-o lead inside the opening 35 minutes. Kris Welham crossed twice while Tyrone McCarthy, Manu Vatuvei and Niall Evalds also crossed. Jermaine McGillvary did score in the closing stages of the half but it didn’t slow the Red Devils down after the break.
Vatuvei notched his second of the afternoon with the hosts first attacking set after the interval. Jake Bibby, Ben Murdoch-Masila and Josh Jones helped the Red Devils reach the half century mark. Oliver Roberts and Ryan Hinchcliffe scored for the Giants but Rick Stone’s men were never in the contest.
The victory means Salford now sit three points behind Wigan in 3rd and Hull FC in 4th. Wakefield and St Helens still currently sit above the Red Devils with Watson’s side set to host St Helens on Thursday 21st September.
Wigan Warriors climbed into the top four at the expense of Wakefield and also jumped above Hull FC with their 22-30 victory over the Black and Whites. Liam Watts was dismissed for an elbow on Michael McIlorum in a first half which saw Mahe Fonua and Oliver Gildart cross for either side. Fonua scored a second with Sika Manu and Marc Sneyd also going over but tries from Tom Davies, John Bateman and a second from Anthony Gelling boosted Wigan’s top four ambitions.
It was a disappointing weekend for Wakefield who slipped out of the top four with a late Jonny Lomax try moving St Helens within two points of the top four. Bill Tupou scored twice either side of Louis McCarthy-Scarsbrooks try but Saints fought back through Theo Fages and Lomax’s dramatic late try. Mark Percival’s conversion sealed a narrow yet important win.
Meanwhile runaway leaders Castleford Tigers extended the gap at the top of the Super League Super 8s table with a 38-24 win over Leeds Rhinos. Ben Roberts grabbed a brace alongside tries from Greg Eden, Jake Webster and Alex Foster in a splendid first half display. Kallum Watkins had given Brian McDermott’s side the lead before Cas’ five unanswered tries.
Jamie Jones-Buchanan’s early second half try was cancelled out by Greg Minkin before Matt Parcell and Mitch Garbutt tried to ignite a Rhinos comeback but Castleford held on and now lead the chasing pack by 12 points.
Round Six Fixtures
- Hull FC vs Wakefield Trinity – Thursday 14th September
- Leeds Rhinos vs Salford Red Devils – Friday 15th September
- St Helens vs Huddersfield Giants – Friday 15th September
- Wigan Warriors vs Castleford Tigers – Sunday 17th September
