as anyone heard anythin if a member of the salford board as got back to gmr yet and are goin to be present on thrusday night for the rugby phone in.. im sure we all have a few questions we'd like to ask regarding the staduim and other issus affectin salford at the minute..

Mr Wilkinson will be on Manchester Radio in the next few minutes....

TUNE IN NOW......

Trueful and forthright in his comments on the stadium.
Very annoyed about the rumours and stated again we will be in a new stadium but it may be later than was anticipated
I think we can put this one to bed now till we hear anything else official.

The Richie Myler one was very interesting, Mr Offiah as we suspected is the one stirring it.Also as he said the whole thing about bringing through youngsters only for other clubs to poach them needs sorting.

A team once went round to Ferdinands house and "persuaded" him his best move was to stay at united.
We should do this with Offiah

No one likes to see their best young talent leave the club however this subject isnt black and white. Three of our young players Myler, Nash and Sidlow were signed from their hometown club. We can bleat on as much as we want but until we have a youth system where locally produced players are developed and brought through the club we have no argument about 'poaching' of youngsters. Anything more than the odd Salfordian playing in the Salford first team is a lot further away than us playing in a 20k stadium at Barton.

Having been an Academy player from the first inception, and a non-Salfordian by birth, there is a lot of players that Salford seem to pick-up from other areas. Warrington being a hub for signing young talent. I'm not suggesting Warrington is overflowing with talent, it's just that Warrington based players have often signed for us. I have often come across players that Support the Wire but state that they would never sign for them due to their terrible youth set-up and general bad-managment. Although I am quoting from a few years ago. Things may have changed...

When I played, a good third of our players were Warrington based. There was three Salford born-and-bred players. None of which made the first team except Phil Coussins, and he was not a success.

The quest for local talent is a tough one. Langworthy and Eccles produce consistently good players but it doesn't reflect in the Salford first team.

Don't feel too bad. When you look at Cumbria, it produces a glut of talent that moves on and plays elsewhere. Such is life. Every area will concede that x-amount of players will leave for pastures new. If Salford really targetted local areas it would produce more talent that would remain loyal to their local Club.

It's a tough one. Players that form a team come from far and wide and it's down to the loyal youth development and/or club scouts to see the potential stars of the future.

Are you suggesting we should form a 'Salford Education Committe?'icon_wink.gif

Good post. I personally think the whole rugby league development in salford needs looking at (whether that be by the club or the council). In my opinion every primary school in Salford should be targeted with visits from Salford. As full time professionals they must have a certain amount of time for this. My little boy goes to a school about a mile away from the proposed new stadium (an area that I feel needs to be a top priority). Not one of the kids in his class go to games but are always interested when he talks about it (and he has appointed himself head coach of his class - nursery). He would be over the moon even if one of the young academy lads turned up to give them a bit of coaching or even just to give a talk and it might increase interst in the area. I am aware that junior clubs in the area struggle to get players at times and maybe this needs addressing by the club. The more kids that get involved the more likely we are to find that elusive born and bred salford first teamer. My lads dream is already to be salford's number 7. we need more like him.

Salford dont do anything for eccles really. Wigan came down and did something with the club. Invited all the youngters and coaches to training sessions and to a match with the full treatment etc. Salford havn't done any of that and there a local team!

At present the main area the club appear to be concentrating on is East and South Manchester. There are development officers in those areas and new teams with juniors have been formed.The remit from the RFL was that Salford should spread the game to Manchester and this is what they are trying to do.
This unfortunately has a detrimental effect on the Core area in Salford.
Our local teams are suffering and the interest in the game is dwindling especially in the schools.
I know of only three in the area who have RL on the school sport curriculum.
We need to get kids interested and playing the game.
This should be at an early age where tag rugby is a good introduction.
Salford should be helping with schools coaching and also holding sessions at local clubs.
If you do not get the kids interested then the sport will become more of a minority pastime and we will never see that next Salford Born England playing scrum half.

I am sure the Rugby League would be interested in this because Wigan are poaching out of their development area by doing this, Salford have been warned about going into Oldham by the rugby league.
Salford do have a development team lead by John Blackburn.

I went into the shop with an idea a while back. I'd be interested to know what people think. The idea was kids parties. I had recently paid £8 a kid (15 kids) for a party in one of these soft play centres and it gave me the idea. Kids would get an hour on the pitch with a player (whether it be first team or academy) and half an hour to an hour for food, candle blowing out etc. Each child would get a party bag containing maybe a key ring or badge, some sweets, novelty toys and a golden angel tickets. The benefits would be:-

1. No outlay - all costs would be factored in to the cost to the customer.
2. Profit - obviously
3. 15 kids (or however many come to the party) take a ticket home for the next game, bringing guests with them, increasing the attendance for that game and if they enjoy it future attendances.
4. Promote the game to kids who might find they like it and /or are good at it and seek out a local club.
5. Those 15 kids will have so much fun playing rugby with the likes of Luke Adamson then they will also have their party there too with maybe a different set of kids starting the whole process again.

Negatives - I can't think of any. The club really has nothing to lose.

Whether this idea got past the door of the shop or not is anyone's guess but i'd be interested to know what others think.

Chrismum all these years and now you are a genius



great idea,









plus at christmas McRae not doing a lot we could rent him out as Santa no padding needed.

great idea i would of loved the opertunity to have done this when i was a kid if it did happen i nw where my kids birthday parties will be at for the next 3 years

Fantastic idea.



Mods - Anyway we can stop supporters from other clubs pinching this idea?

They did something like this at a young supporters meeting a few years back.
The kids went on the pitch training with the players and they all loved it.
A similar thing was also done at a CO-OP set up with Robbie Paul, again this went down a storm.
So these things do work and the club should be looking into things like what Chris' mum says.
Since Trish went the emphasis on the younger supporters has gone and there is now nothing.
The club would probably put it down to Health and Safety etc etc

Pleased with the positive response. I might give it another try at the club - bypass the shop this time though. Anyone know who is best to approach about this?

you should be marketing director

Trish' replacement the new Marketing guy (sorry I donot know his name)
would be the best bet

What did he say?? I missed the interview

Me also.

Well done chrismum , great idea.

Ask to speak to Adam - his remit is to increase attendances

thanks Early Bath I'll do that.

The name of the marketing guy is Adam Jude, who coincidentally played for our academy in that first year alongside me and The Butcher. Adam also hails from Warrington and was brought down by Kevin Tamati.

I am one of those aforementioned Salford born and bred academy players who didn't go on to greater things at the club. But what an honour it was to pull on the Red jersey and fulfil a boyhood dream of playing at the Willows. we need to have more kids who dream like this but probably of playing at Barton now!

I was disappointed to hear the clubs that all those lads who were introduced to the crowd last friday. Not one of them from the Salford area. I feel that we have shot ourselves in the foot a bit over the years. There is a problem with not enough players to go around all the amateur clubs.

This was always a problem when I was in youth rugby at Langworthy. We have a situation where we get some players spread across clubs and not enough at any of them to make a team in some age groups. Surley Salford City Reds should be coordinating this under the umbrella of Salford rugby development area rather than leaving it up to well meaning amateurs who have other jobs and pressures and don't have the back up structure. It really is a constant battle.... and I know cos I've done and continue to do so in my job as a teacher.

We have a bunch of cheerleaders which seems to grow by the day. Red Hot flames, fire starters, mini-fire starters, tiny little sparklers. We have more cheerleaders than fans. Why? Because there's only one group which have the support of the club and subsequently a high profile. If youth rugby was coordinated by the club maybe we would get a stronger base to build from. Those who make the grade are straight into the academy, those who just miss out can then be signed by the amateur clubs open age teams maybe.

Think we are picking up a reputation for being the club who will promote youth to the full squad if the talent is there, Adamson, Ratchford being two , both are Wigan based I think , We have had quality youngsters from the Salford/Manchester Area - Dennis Betts , Adrian Morley, Callum Watkins. They were all snapped up by 'Bigger Clubs'. Jason Robinson , one of Wigans greatest finds was actually a Hunslet Boys player, Some of Warrington's best young playersicon_razz.gifaul Sculthorpe / Iestyn Harris were poached from Oldham. If those players presented last week come good, wear the red shirt with pride that'll do for me

Absolutely middleman, I don't dispute that. We are bound to need players from other areas. Malcolm Alker is a wigan lad who has made Salford his adopted City. Another was the great Chris Hesketh.

What i am getting at is it would be nice and great for the club if we could get some lads in the team who hail from Salford. Of course they must be of the very best quality but it would serve to inspire our youth in the City to aspire to greater things than knocking round the streets.

The most successful and vibrant RL club over the years has been Wigan. They have always had a strong contingent of Wigan lads in the team. Their decline has coincided with the diluting of the local element in their team. It was almost like the heart had been taken away from the Wigan team and only with the likes of the Tomkins brothers and Ainscough in the side do they even start to look like they could get back to that level again.