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Keep doing us proud

21/ 3/2002

REDS coach Steve McCormack believes the club's faithful followers have a massive part to play in success on the field this season.

Salford have lost their two opening Super League VII fixtures - against Hull and St Helens - but McCormack is full of nothing but praise for the die-hards that get behind his lads every week.

"It makes a massive difference," he said. "Against Hull [at The Willows] the fans were superb, and even at St Helens, on a dreadful night, they got behind the side and gave us a terrific lift.

"If you ask the players they'll tell you the same, especially the Aussie lads, who aren't used to atmospheres like these. Now we just want to give them something back and start picking up some points," he added.

The Reds were unlucky to lose against last season's overachievers Hull on the opening day of the campaign, and even though they were out-gunned at Knowsley Road, the signs were still there that this season promises more then a wooden spoon, as predicted by many so-called experts.

This weekend they travel to Belle Vue for a crunch tie against Wakefield, who finished a place below Salford last time round. The Wildcats escaped the drop zone on the final day of the season, beating the Reds in a fiery tie that saw Malcolm Alker, Bobbie Goulding and Stuart Littler sent off.

McCormack revealed that the crippling injury problems that hit his squad already are starting to clear up.

Warren Jowitt is making good progress after a hernia operation and Mike Wainwright's hamstring is on the mend. These two, together with Steve Blakeley, could return as soon as the Easter weekend.

Andy Coley has few more weeks on the sideline before he can be considered and Gary Broadbent, as revealed in last week's Advertiser Sport, faces a six-week lay-off with his broken ankle.

The full back's absence has left McCormack with a selection headache, but he says he has plenty of options. Alan Hunte, Damian Gibson, Danny Arnold and Mike Platt are all capable of filling the berth.