Reds give Cats the blues
Stefan Ratchford scored a hat-trick as Salford saw off Wakefield 34-12 in an impressive display at the Willows.
Last Updated: 03/06/11 10:13pm
Stefan Ratchford scored a hat-trick as Salford saw off Wakefield 34-12 in an impressive display at the Willows.
Salford had won only one of their last five Super League matches but in the week of the announcement of Matthew Parish as their new coach, this was an important boost.
Parrish does not arrive until mid-July but he could be set to take on a team on the up - although in truth Wakefield were pretty woeful opposition.
That despite making a fast start with a try from Tommy Lee after only two minutes.
Lee dummied and went round Matty Smith to score in the corner with Gareth Moore notching his first Super League points with a touchline conversion.
But a mistake from Frankie Mariano gave Salford the chance to reply almost immediately with Daniel Holdsworth collecting his rebound off Greg Johnson to cross, although too far out wide for the Reds skipper to convert.
Salford went ahead 8-6 after Holdsworth's 40-20 gave them the initiative for Matty Smith and Luke Patten to combine for Ratchford to force his way over for his first try.
Fumble
Josh Griffin saved a try with an athletic leap to defuse Holdsworth's kick, but a Julien Rinaldi fumble led to the Reds third try with Ratchford side-stepping over from Patten's pass.
Wakefield's right-hand side was exposed again after 26 minutes with Vinnie Anderson's pass allowing Jodie Broughton to grab his first Super League try since April 16.
Ratchford took over the kicking after three Holdsworth misses but fared no better.
The Reds should have led by more than 16-6 at the break but did not take long to extend their advantage, with Lee Jewitt powering over from Holdsworth's pass, who then landed the conversion.
Ratchford went over for his treble on the hour after smart inter-passing from Holdsworth, Smith and Patten to extend the lead to 28-6.
Jarrad Hickey marked his debut with a try after 66 minutes converted by Moore, before Luke Adamson brushed off Lee on a charging run to the line to ensure that Salford ended a run of three home defeats.
