Whilst the Wigan chap isn't quite right but he has a point. There is currently a world level 2nd rower at Wigan who was educated in Swinton yet Salford scouts didn't pick him up? Maybe it's our scouting policy or the people doing the scouting, rather than goes the predictable places, Wigan, Oldham, they should pop along to the likes of Folly U16, Langworthy U16 etc. Maybe if he's kids were approached they'd love to play for Salford then their mates would see a Salford lad playing it would not only give the feel of local community towards to the team but fans would give them more of a chance as they would be one of their own so to speak.


I appreciate there may be some grammar geeks out their. Feel free to pick the bones

Adam Neal - but he came via Warrington's academy.

Maybe he won't have commanded high wages straight away, but if he's promised money, glitz and glamour in the event of him coming good and breaking through then of course it's going to turn his head.

I'm not saying our scouting is perfect and I realise there's other examples, but I'm just trying to look at all possible angles.

Well seeing as I said my cousin played for Wigan and thats why I grew up supporting them it really can't be too difficult to put it together and realise Denis is my cousin.

In that case then, why don't you support Widnes now?

Also that makes you Darren's cousin, who played for Salford, but presumably because he didn't hit the same heights in the professional game as his brother, the team he played for didn't warrant your attention at the time?

You, of all people should know just how difficult it is to attract kids to play RL in Manchester/Salford area and you should read the redshed's eloquent post again just in case you missed the point. Oh and finally, you might also want to ask your cousin(s) what his/their opinion(s) is/are before you come on here pontificating again.

Why would i want to ask their opinion when I have my own? Also I did used to go watch Darren play for the "A" team but I don't really have many clear moments of those games as I was very young at the time (I'm 22 now) so most memories of RL as a kid are the big games at Central Park and what seemed the annual trip down to Wembley. I went to school in Prestwich and your academy(?) is at Phillips High School and at the time your 1st team were training at Sedgley Park RU but despite being so close to them and there being 3 high schools and many primary schools within that area Salford never once came into my school or any others in the area that I know of, infact Sedgley Park RU a semi-pro/amateur team did more around the schools and community. Maybe if you'd come into those schools where I know there was alot of people interested in the game but didn't have a real understanding of it you'd be in a better position with support. And why have you only now gone back to the red devil surely that is your biggest marketable claim?? That the most famous Football team in the world took its nickname from you.

Not reading all that.

Just to clarify then, when you were at school you knew there were a lot of people interested in the game but didn't have a real understanding of it and you think that had Salford come into those schools our support would have been better? Two things here, firstly you didn't mention our fan base until now, you were on about developing players and secondly, how do you know that the 'interest' never manifested itself into a trip to see a live match?

When you were very young and Wigan were winning everything there was no SL and the community development aspect of SL clubs didn't exist, Salford relied almost exclusively on Folly Lane and cast-offs from Wigan, Saints, Warrington etc. as any players that were any good normally got snapped up first by those clubs including your cousin - in fact when we brought that reign crashing down (literally) in 1996 our team that day included the likes of Steve Blakeley, Steve Hampson and Scott Naylor, all ex-Wigan, deemed not good enough for them anymore. So, times have changed almost unrecognisably since then.

As mentioned before - just look at how well our U20's are doing at the moment and tell me that we don't develop our own - it's keeping them that's the problem, do the names Jordan Turner and Stefan Ratchford ring a bell? If Wigan had the same set of circumstances that Salford have instead of dozens and dozens of amateur clubs with kids playing at every age level sitting within 10 minutes drive of the DW then they'd struggle too. In fact, I think Alan Hunte performs near miracles given the constraints.

I was 6 when Superleague was introduced therefore was in school for 10 more years after its introduction plenty of time for Salford to of had an involvement in schools whilst I was there, or are you admitting an amateur RU club is better ran than a Professional RL club when it comes to involvement in the community??

Wigan didn't come into your school yet you still chose to support them. How many Sedgeley Park games did you go to?

I didn't go and watch Sedgley I played for there through school and before asking stupid questions about why I support Wigan read my other posts.

You're being v.selective about which points you choose to address.Are you now claiming that the club missed out a potential superstar by not visiting your school? Just what is your point about Salford not developing its own? Did your school even play RL?

None of the schools in area played RL despite your academy actually being at one of those schools. And no I'm saying you missed out on a superstar but surely its your responsibility to get the game played/watched by youngsters in the area and you do nothing to help. I've never seen any advertisements by Salford in local newspapers for up coming games and because I went to the last game The Willows I keep getting free tickets for the majority of games this season, why are these going to someone who has paid before?? I do actually go to Salford games when you don't play same day as Wigan or can't make it to away games because of work and would pay for these games but when I can go free why would I pay?? Surely after I've been to 1 game free it should stop or perhaps go to half price then full price.