Salford Red Devils boss sends “head held high” message despite Leeds Rhinos defeat

Salford Red Devils head coach Paul Rowley has singled out two players for their immense efforts after the club’s 28-0 loss to Leeds Rhinos.

Once again, the Red Devils were forced to field a team with players out of position as well as blooding plenty of their young guns on account of injuries and the restricted salary cap, however, Salford stuck in and only trailed 6-0 at the half.

Highlighting just how much Salford had to defend was the fact that Leeds had 29 play the balls inside the Red Devils’ 20, though they only scored one try – a show of Salford’s resilience but also Leeds’ blunt attack.

Two quickfire second-half tries put the game beyond Salford whilst two others came later to make it 28-0 with James McDonnell proving the unlikely hero as he scored four, however, Rowley was keen to highlight two of his own senior players for their effort.

Salford Red Devils CEO gives comprehensive update on club’s future

Speaking post-match to Sky Sports, Rowley said: “You can’t question the attitude and commitment, character and all that sort of stuff. Really poor completion gave Leeds a lot of possession and they’ve got too many good players to not make it count eventually.”

On his key men, he added: “Jack Ormondroyd got the Man of the Match for us, and it’s not just tonight, he’s been absolutely immense. People like him and Joe Mellor are what this club are about. I’m very proud of them.

“I’m pleased with the effort but obviously as always disappointed with the result.”

Salford Red Devils boss sends “head held high” message despite Leeds Rhinos defeat

Head Injury Assessments for others meant that Jack Ormondroyd ended up playing almost the entire 80 minutes with Joe Mellor another to play long minutes, and the stats showed that for both with Ormondroyd topping the tackle count with 52 and Mellor second with 41.

Following the exit of captain Kallum Watkins and the fact that full-back Ryan Brierley was injured, Mellor skippered the side and Rowley revealed the final message he gave his players.

The Salford boss explained: “Joe Mellor was captain tonight and that was my last message, ‘Don’t let Joe Mellor down’ because Joe Mellor is the type of person you want in your club. I want to play alongside people like Joe Mellor.

“Jack Ormondroyd has been doing what he’s been doing tonight for a month. There’s others, Esan Marters, Chris Hill who ran himself to a standstill previously. There are others and the lads that are taking to the field are absolute credit and people will notice that.”

Speaking with pride, Rowley added: “You can walk round town with your head held high and the old adage in rugby league, everybody says is about the man in the mirror. When you can look in that mirror and the person looking back is pleased and proud that you’ve given everything, you can’t do any more than that.

“We’ve got a lot of people that can look in the mirror and be proud of their efforts and be self-assured that they’re giving 100%.

“Whilst it’s not polished at times and it’s not faultless by any means and we’ll keep pushing them hard and cracking the whip, we’re still very proud of the effort.”

The Red Devils move towards a Round Eight game against Catalans Dragons where they will look for their second win of the Super League season.

Plenty of heart, but it’s the Rhinos who take the two points.

🤝 @CarLeaseCompare & @hselec_ pic.twitter.com/bzozO3VAxv

— Salford Red Devils 👹 (@SalfordDevils) April 10, 2025