Saturday night is becoming the new Friday for the Salford supporters.
Indeed, for the third week in a row Iestyn Harris and his resurgent Devils were forced to shorten preparations on the back of two tough away fixtures as they finally returned home to the newly laid AJ Bell Stadium turf.
The lead up to the clash with Hull FC was marketed as the home bow of new star signing Kevin Locke, but the Kiwi international picked up an injury in his stunning debut against Huddersfield and was unavailable for selection.
As expected, though, the Salford spectators did turn out in better than average numbers packing the south stand in scenes reminiscent of the famous Willows ‘Shed’ – and that was despite the heavens opening yet again at a Salford home match.
From the moment Adrian Morley led his men onto the battlefield one a feeling it would be our night. The return of Harrison Hansen after a four-week lay off with a hand injury laid the platform for a bruising encounter, and Morley displayed some of his trademark bone crunching hits reminiscent of his father and Salford cult hero Shane. Home debuts were handed to former Batley man Josh Griffin whilst Mason Caton-Brown continues to prove just why he should be in the running for ‘Young Player Of The Year’.
For Hull FC, they were shell shocked and forced into submission by the ferocity and aggression adopted by the Devils. Every tackle was hard and often left their young guns on the deck.
Something appears to be missing at the once dominant FC, despite the usual credible performance from Setaimata Sa and Danny Houghton you could see why Adam Pearson wasted no time in handing over a large cheque to acquire the services of Devils halfback Marc Sneyd.
Make no mistake it wasn’t the complete performance from us, old habits die hard and Salford of old reared its ugly head in the second half conceding soft tries that made for an anxious final quarer. But as Salford have proved over the last few games we know when to deliver a sucker punch, and the final try of the night proved just that, with Caton-Brown swooping on a loose ball to spring 40 metres for his second score.
With two consecutive wins, and a distinctive team spirit, Iestyn Harris is moulding a team that is set to flourish with an excitable yet tough brand of football. Be in no doubt the Devilution is well and truly here.
