Salford go full circle from 2020

 In October 2020, Salford had to forfeit their fixture against Warrington and a 24-0 loss was recorded. In 2021, Salford have taken a new approach to ensure that this will not happen again.

Salford were reduced to 13 fit players for that fixture. In their previous game against St Helens, Lee Mossop and Oliver Roberts played with broken ribs and Gil Dudson was sick on the day of the game. The call to forfeit the match against Warrington was made by Salford director Ian Blease, out of concern for the welfare of his remaining fit players.

Whilst 2020 was a unique season, with Salford at times averaging a fixture every 3.8 days, 2021 also will bring fixture congestion as the season progresses. Under the stewardship of new coach Richard Marshall, their recruitment for 2021 sought to prepare for this. A decision was made to prioritise depth over quality and as the season progresses, we will see if that decision was the right one.

Salford's 2021 squad broken down by 'natural' position.

In certain positions, Salford have remarkable depth, such as at centre, half back and throughout the forward pack. In positions such as full back, they have only one specialist, Morgan Escare, and his opportunities have been limited in 2021. For positions such as full back the versatility of their squad ensure they have adequate cover. Elliot Kear, Dan Sarginson, Matty Costello, Chris Atkin and Tui Lolohea all have experience at full back, several have played in that role for Salford in 2021 already.

Richard Marshall is a coach who has experience at Championship level as head coach and as an assistant coach at both Warrington and St Helens. He has patiently waited for his opportunity to be a head coach at the top level.

The early days of Marshall's reign at Salford so far has seen heavy squad rotation, including in the 'spine' of the team, where perceived wisdom states consistency is king.

There are two ways of looking at this. The first is that Marshall is allowing his entire squad an opportunity in the early weeks of the season, with the best and most consistent performers earning his trust, and ultimately, a starting jersey on a more consistent basis.

The second view that Marshall is indecisive. An inexperienced and vacillating leader who is harming his side with constant changes and not allowing combinations to form. Without an in-depth knowledge of what is going on behind the scenes, it is not possible to know which of the two views (if either) are correct.

Salford have started the season with only one Super League win. However, their losses have come against St Helens, Hull FC, Catalans and Castleford. These are all fixtures which many observers would have expected Salford to lose.

Their performance against Castleford in the Challenge Cup on Saturday was arguably their finest of the season. It was reminiscent of the Salford of the last two seasons. A side of dogged determination, a side that would never give in (even where all hope appeared lost), a side that can mix it with more expensively-assembled and decorated squads.

Things don't get any easier for Salford. After a Challenge Cup game against Castleford, they play St Helens, Wigan and Warrington in consecutive weeks.

Patience will be the name of the game as Salford's fixtures in July and August contain fixtures that they would expect to win. It might be a rocky few weeks coming up for Salford. Their season is likely to turn on whether they can harness the Ian Watson-style spirit of calmness and trust as the season enters its mid-way point.

Perhaps the recruitment approach of having a deeper squad than in previous years will then start to reap rewards.