Quote: theredshed "I understand what you are saying but these bigger clubs have had the advantage of taking their pick of the best young British talent for decades. I know many years ago Salford offered a 17 year old Shaun Edwards a massive deal and he turned it down and signed for less money at Wigan. How many more has there been Adrian Morley, Callum Watkins etc. It's similar in Football where the hottest young talent wants to play for Man Utd, Liverpool, Arsenal or Chelsea. Although there is always a few top quality players that slip through the net or develop later and that's what Salford should be looking for.
Personally I think our club's junior development has come on leaps and bounds in recent years under Alan Hunte. There is nothing more I like to see than young local players given a chance and taking it. Realistically all Salford can do is sign the best kids they can and then ensure they put as much investment into their development as possible.
I know it must seem like I'm defending the club but it's very easy to make comparisons (with big clubs) and criticise but sometimes you have to be realistic and put it down to the hand you are dealt. I think Salford have got to look to emulate what Huddersfield have achieved after some years of growth in a new stadium. Would these quality kids they have now signed for them if they were still at Fartown without the financial muscle of Ken Davy?'"
I agree, largely, with what you are saying. The signing of young players isn't just down to financial capability, it's what the club can offer in terms of player development. This is where Hunte has been a massive success. We just need a first team coach that can move our young players from SL potential to SL quality. McRae hasn't been capable of this from day one, hence the reason we lost Turner.
Morley was a big miss by the club, if he'd been offered a contract I reckon he would have signed it. Kallum Watkin just sounds like it was one big mess, but Shaun Edwards was destined to play for Wigan.
As for Hudds they are the model of how to build a SL team. You can't rely solely on producing SL standard players from within the club, but they've spent money wisely. The acquistions they have made recently, really improve the standard of their rugby and have generally been pretty good. Luke O'Donnell looks a much better player than Willie Mason currently does.
We're not too far away, we just need to stop signing the likes of Jeremy Smith or Willie Talau. The latter did well when he played, we just didn't see enough of him, a reccurance of which seems to be happening with Anderson and possibly Feka. They still have time on their side, though, and with a little more on-field success I'm sure we can start to bring better quality signings into the club on a more regular basis. Rather than the hit and miss situation we currently have.
