Salford Red Devils full-back Ryan Brierley has lifted the lid on the off-season drama and just how tough it was for the players.
Brierley and the rest of the Salford Red Devils‘ first team were back in action on Saturday when they hosted Leeds Rhinos at Headingley, a week after what was effectively the club’s reserves lost 82-0 to St Helens, and just days after the club’s takeover was confirmed by the RFL.
Confirmation of that takeover meant that the £1.2 million salary cap that had been imposed on the club was lifted, thus granting Paul Rowley his entire first-team squad to select from, including Brierley.
In front of a passionate home crowd, things got going quickly for Rowley’s side as Kallum Watkins crashed over after 90 seconds but Leeds would score 32 unanswered points to win 32-6 and spoil what was effectively Salford’s homecoming and/or takeover party.
Full-back Ryan Brierley worked as a pundit for the BBC when they covered Leigh’s win over Huddersfield with the Scotland international providing insight on what the past few months have been like at Salford Red Devils.
Salford Red Devils star Ryan Brierley lifts lid on ‘mentally draining’ off-season
Credit: Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com
“It’s been tough, I don’t want to sugarcoat it,” Brierley revealed.
“It’s been mentally draining for the boys and the staff, especially when you’re getting to the situation in the last three or four months when you’re worrying about being paid and mortgages being paid – especially in December when lads are worrying about buying their kid’s Christmas presents.”
He also conceded that Saturday’s loss to Leeds Rhinos was somewhat of an “anti-climax” but underlined that it came off the back of an incredibly tough period.
The Salford Red Devils man said: “It’s been tough and probably yesterday was a bit of anti-climax. We wanted to have the great comeback and have a great day but I just think what we’ve had to go through has been really tough.
“I suppose it’s nice to get over the back of it but I don’t want to understate how hard it’s been.”
Concluding, he said: “I think the protection from the club, Paul Rowley and Chris O’Connor, our player welfare, shouldn’t be overlooked because what they’ve done has been pretty amazing.
“I think everyone looks at the recency bias of last week at St Helens but we’ve been living this for three and a half to four months now with the worry and the stress on our families.
“The upside seems to be that everything is sorted and solved and hopefully, we can just look forward to playing rugby league now.”
Welfare officer Chris O’Connor took to social media to share footage of Brierley’s interview and gave his own verdict as well.
It’s easy looking in from the outside and judging the actions of others based on incomplete facts. The last 4 months have been really tough mentally. The way the group have stuck together is a testament to their resilience & class. It’s a privilege & an honour to work with them https://t.co/PmdeJWQ7SV
— Chris O’Connor (@Chrisoconnr) February 23, 2025
