At the AJ Bell on Sunday 9 August Salford made a winning pitch against the Wakefield Wildcats to stay in Super League.
The first match of the Super 8 competition saw the two teams finishing in the bottom spots in Super League face off against one another, with the Red Devils coming out on top.
With a Rangi Chase interception, and a hobbled Cory Paterson deservedly winning Man of the Match, Salford set out their stall for the kind of survival that can either save staff jobs or pitch a club into turmoil.
RECAP: Minute-by-minute coverage of Salford v Wakefield
With only three home games, Salford will need to win at least one of their four away games at either Bradford, Halifax, Widnes or Hull KR and win all of their home legs to stand a chance of staying in the top flight next year.
No easy task.
But by half time on Sunday Salford had the wind in their sails and it seemed like each of these seven qualifiers would be a formality.
Then the constant complaint from fans reared its ugly head: the Devils had the Wildcats by the short and curlies, but simply switched off and allowed Wakefield right back into the match.
Salford started well, and it was over half an hour before Wakefield got close enough to the Salford try line to look threatening.
When Josh Griffin took the ball over 60 metres to score the first of Salford’s tries after 13 minutes, the home side dampened the rampant enthusiasm of the large travelling contingent from Wakefield.
Griffin was to get his second try after 25 minutes and Salford looked in total control of the game.
Those who felt Wakefield were in with a good chance of actually winning the qualifiers were left wondering what had gone even further wrong than in the first 23 rounds.
Then, just before the half hour, Cory Paterson limped off with what looked like a game-ending injury and Wakefield took advantage of his removal to start to exert a bit more pressure on the Devils. However George Griffin extended Salford’s lead to 16-0 with 5 minutes left to play, even leaving Josh with an easy kick.
Right on the hooter, a Wildcats grubber took a lucky bounce and popped up into the arms of Jacob Miller to score under the posts, leaving the visitors some home going in just 10 points adrift.
Salford came back out for the final 40 minutes with their heads still in the game, but giving away a few silly penalties, they allowed Miller to score again and all of a sudden Wakefield looked more dangerous than they have for most of this season.
With less than 10 minutes gone in the half, Wakefield pushed ahead to lead 16-18 after a Danny Washbrook score – now it was Salford looking demoralised.
Cory Paterson with his ankle heavily strapped returned to the field and made an immediate impact scoring right under the posts and converting as well to make it 22-18 with just 20 minutes left.
Just two minutes later Wakefield were back in the box seat as Reece Lyne went over and a Smith conversion made it 22-24.
The home side slipped further behind after gifting a penalty which Wakefield converted to extend their lead to four points with 13 minutes left.
Salford looked as though they would snatch defeat from the jaws of victory until Junior Sa’u intercepted passing to Rangi Chase who raced a stunning 80 metres to score under the posts.
With just five minutes left, Michael Dobson put in an old-fashioned up-n-under which dropped into Cory Paterson’s arms to score under the posts, and with Josh Griffin converting, Salford led 34-26.
Paterson is announced as a well deserved man of the match, and the hooter goes to give Salford a valuable 2 points in their quest to retain Super League status in 2016.
Salford coach Ian Watson admitted: “We drifted away towards the end of the first half, and again in the second, but I felt if we carried on the way we started, we’d have won by a lot more than we did.
“I had a few heart attacks at the start of the second half. Wakefield started beating us around the ruck, and that cost us.”
On Rangi Chase breaking away at speed, Watson said: “He does that all the time in training. He has it in his locker and I wish he’d use it more often to be honest!
“Cory [Paterson] was immense today. He injured his ankle in the first half, but we asked him to play on and he more than did that for us. In the second half he was one of a few outstanding players.”
“George (Griffin) held up a certain try, and injured himself in the process. If they had scored then, I think it might have gotten away from us.”
Salford: Jones-Bishop; J. Griffin, Thornley, Sa’u, Johnson; Chase, Dobson; Taylor, Tomkins, G. Griffin, Hansen, Maitua, Paterson. Replacements: Lee, Krasniqi, Evalds, Morley.
Wakefield: L. Smith; Owen, Tupou, Arundel, Lyne; Miller, T. Smith; Scruton, Moore, Anderson, Molloy, Ashurst, Simon. Replacements: Sio, Walker, Mullally, Washbrook.
Referee: James Child
Attendance: 3,400
