Salford Red Devils saw their winning run come to an end this afternoon as they were defeated by Catalans Dragons.
Head Coach Paul Rowley fielded an unchanged team despite the absence of key centres Nene Macdonald and Tim Lafai due to injuries. The Reds began the game positively, with strong plays from Loghan Lewis, Shane Wright, and Brad Singleton, effectively limiting the Dragons’ advance.
Salford’s initial attacking set came deep in Catalans territory, with Lewis nearly creating a try-scoring chance through a half-break. However, it was ex-Red Devil Theo Fages, now playing halfback for Catalans, who set up the first try. A chipped kick from Fages bounced favorably for Tom Davies, who then passed inside to Cesar Rougé for the score.
Catalans almost replicated this success moments later, but Matt Ikuvalu was ruled offside from Fages’ initial kick. Nonetheless, Fages soon found Fouad Yaha on the left, whose subsequent kick inside allowed Arthur Romano to score.
Salford tried to regroup with Marc Sneyd orchestrating play through his kicking game, but no significant opportunities emerged. Catalans maintained pressure through offloads, leading to another try when Ben Garcia broke a tackle and passed to Rougé, who kicked a grubber into the corner for Romano to secure his second try.
The Dragons’ 18-point lead was extended early in the second half. Shane Wright’s high tackle on Garcia allowed Arthur Mourgue to convert a 40-meter penalty kick, bringing the score to 20-0.
The remainder of the game saw numerous errors from both sides. Salford managed to get into promising positions repeatedly but failed to deliver in the final execution. The Red Devils will need to regroup quickly as they prepare to face Huddersfield Giants at the John Smith’s Stadium for the second time in 2024 next week.
Interchanges: Amir Bourouh, King Vuniyayawa, Joe Shorrocks, Gil Dudson.
Interchanges: Paul Seguier, Alriz Da Costa, Chris Satae, Jordan Dezaria.
Tries: Cesar Rougé, Arthur Romano (2).
Conversions: Arthur Mourgue (4/4).
