The brand new Salford RLFC already have 11 players signed up as they approach the start of the Championship season.
The RFL only confirmed Salford’s place in the competition earlier this week with the bid from Mason Caton-Brown and his consortium being successful when it comes to taking on a phoenix club. The organisation wasted no time in appointing Ryan Brierley as CEO of the new club and over the coming weeks, Brierley, a fan and former player of Salford Red Devils, will be tasked with getting a team together.
A head coach is in place but is yet to be confirmed publicly and over the next fortnight or so, Brierley will hope to get a squad together that is capable of fulfilling their first fixture of the season against Oldham on January 16.
And, in an exclusive interview with Serious About Rugby League, Brierley has confirmed he is more than halfway towards achieving that goal, with 11 players committed to represent Salford.
It seems a number of players can be expected to arrive on loan as the season draws closer, too, with a series of Super League outfits already reaching out to help.
Salford RLFC recruitment latest
“What I can’t stress enough is how good the clubs have been in regards to offering loan players, the Super League clubs have been absolutely fantastic,” Brierley told Serious About Rugby League. “Pretty much every club has reached out to me wanting to help, which is the main thing, and the fact they can offer so much help straight off the bat is pretty special.
“We’ve got 11 players signed up as it stands, either contracted or pay as you play. We’ve got to hold our nerve on the quality of loan players that will come in.
“The loan dynamic is pretty different because you’ve got to try and manage a call back. For example it’s really difficult to have a half-back or a full-back on a two-week loan because they might get called back and it disrupts your whole team. You have to be selective, I believe.
“I think middles and outside backs you can go week to week with them but important positions probably require a bit more attention and detail. The clubs have been great. There will be a lot of loans, as many as we can, to bring quality from Super League but who they are as of yet hasn’t been finalised.”
On those already signed up, he added: “The 11 players are done, that will be a blend of ex-reserve players, Championship players and a few lads that have come out of academy and reserve teams. That’s where we’re at.
“As long as we can get 17 lads to play a game on that Friday night, I’m happy with we’re at, I just want to know in regards to loans where we can add some real quality to a very youthful and inexperienced team. Ultimately, that’s where the club is at right now.”
It’s not been smooth sailing for Brierley, though, since he hung up his playing boots and took the CEO job. With the old Salford club being wound up and liquidated, some players and agents saw debts unpaid and that is throwing up some difficulties in regards to recruitment.
“We’ve been speaking to players in the background and the biggest issue that I’m having is a lot of people don’t want to talk to us,” he added.
“That’s players and agents because they’re all owed money from previous, so I’m finding it really difficult.
“A lot of agents have been unbelievable with me but a few agents don’t like dealing with us because they’re owed money from X amount of people from previous.
“Some players don’t trust coming to Salford right now which is understandable in regards to they don’t trust whether they’ll get paid or not and these are all challenges we’re going to have to deal with.
“My first job is to find 17 players to play a game for one, but ultimately the bigger picture is rebuilding relationships again. There’s so many relationships that have been broken and I guess that’s my job to repair them.
“Over time that will happen, I’m having a lot of conversations with people that have been hurt or burned in the past and it’s important, regardless of performance, it’s important that the club is built on strong foundations which hasn’t been the case historically for a number of years.”
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