Rugby League Cares respond after Salford Red Devils’ player welfare comments as ‘unprecedented offer’ revealed

Rugby League Cares, an independent charity who work with the RFL, have responded to Salford Red Devils over comments regarding player welfare.

The situation at Salford is one that has seen players and staff go through emotional turmoil with understandable fears about job security and paydays being met, all on top of the stresses of being professional athletes.

As such, player welfare has been a hot topic and the lack of it was raised by Salford forward Chris Hill in an interview with The Sun. Assistant coach Krisnan Inu was then asked about those comments and whether he felt the RFL had done enough to support those at the club.

Inu responded: “If I was to tick a box every time they came in I could probably do it in one hand, so you take it from there (and consider) if that’s enough, especially for the boys and the staff in this position we’ve been in.”

Serious About Rugby League approached the RFL for comment regarding Inu’s verdict, and that’s seen Rugby League Cares release a statement outlining all the work that they have done thus far in this Salford Red Devils’ saga.

Rugby League Cares refute Salford assistant’s claim

A detailed statement was released by the charity, in which they outlined ‘weekly visits’, something which completely contradicts Inu’s comments regarding his ability to count meetings “on one hand”.

The full statement from Rugby League Cares can be seen below, highlighting all the support that they have offered to the club and to players.

The charity said: “Rugby League Cares would like to clarify its position regarding the wellbeing support provided to staff and players of Salford Devils during this difficult time.

“Most people will be aware that RL Cares is responsible for delivering the sport’s player wellbeing programmes, which have been the subject of some criticism in the last few days.

“Throughout the ongoing financial crisis at Salford, RL Cares has done all in its power to support the wellbeing of both the club’s players and staff. This has included:

– Weekly visits to the club by our Player Wellbeing Manager (and former Salford player) Adrian Morley to meet players and offer emotional support;

– 24/7 access to complimentary and totally confidential psychotherapy support for all players and their families;

– Signposting to specially-created player-focused finance webinars featuring advice on money issues and debt management.”

Salford Red Devils fail to respond to ‘unprecedented offer’

Rugby League Cares have also revealed their ‘unprecedented offer’ for one of their employees to be embedded at Salford to offer ‘full-time support to players’. That offer, made in April, has gone unanswered.

Their statement continued: “In addition, at the end of April 2025 RL Cares wrote to Salford Devils offering to embed a member of the charity’s staff within the club to provide full-time support to players. The club has yet to respond to this unprecedented offer, which remains on the table.

“RL Cares also facilitates regular meetings for all club welfare staff where they are able to share best practice and support each other during difficult periods throughout the season.

“All Super League players are also able to access a range of training and education grants to support their ongoing professional development, which becomes more important in times of uncertainty.

“RL Cares is acutely aware of the challenges and hardships being experienced by everyone affected by the situation at Salford and will continue to provide support when and where we can.

“Whilst we have made our concerns known to the RFL and are in regular contact with the governing body, it must be remembered that RL Cares is an independent charity which plays no role in the governance of the sport, nor in the decision-making process of clubs or their directors.”