Got to agree with Early Bath. McRae mucked Ratchford about way too much when he was here; not playing him, playing him out of position, not letting him play his natural game. If Ratchford was playing week in week out in the halves (like he should be) then I reckon he'd definately be here next season.
Like Photo Finish said and like we have done in the past, we will move on. We've sill got Sneyd and I've been quite impressed with Nial Evalds in the academy.

Leagueweekly reports it differently:
It suggests that Ratchford may stay but is keeping quiet whilst he is making up his mind. it further states that Daniel Mortimer has been in contact with our coach.

However it further states that Mr Mortimer is unable to secure a first team place "under coach Stephen Kearney, who has preferred make-shift halves to cover for injuries rather than plump for the specialist half-back".

I would like more details on this matter.

You can't just play a player in his favourite position to keep him happy.
Sorry ,guys,but Steff didn't look the part at stand off.He played centre and looked tremendous.
Can't blame Shaun for that decision.

was something in the Herald (Brisbane) newspaper. In fact, sounds like that is the same text as League Weekly

Looks like Ratch has gone, which is a shame. However, at the end of the day you can't really blame him when Warrington or Wigan come knocking. We just have to make sure that we develop as a Team over the next three years and a move becomes less tempting.

In the short term, his leaving could actually be a blessing. Entertaining though Stef is, he's not the best of Centres and the offer we would have made to him could well buy us a more effective replacement. I think that MP will stick with Holdsworth and Smith as halves and use our limited resources for a Centre and a Prop.

Good Luck Stef and ONWARDS AND UPWARDS THE REDS!

We talk about limited resources but with the new ground we will be able to cheat like Warrington and wigan et al when it comes to the salary cap with all our new funding streams.

echoing other posts here but let him go, the club is bigger than any one player. I'd rather have a someone who wants to fight and is bursting with pride to be a Salford player and don that famous red shirt. As much as I like Stef and wish him well, if thats his decision lets find a good replacement and move on

Wire board fairly confident he's signed for them
[url=http://viewtopic.php?f=21&t=499191&start=390rumours signings[/url

When are Warrington going to develop their own talent instead of stealing ours?

What,s Holdsworth,s best position,because in my opinion,he is not a half back.

We got 200.000 for myler,did we not.

what did we do with the Myler money?

few re-tweets on Twitter that he has done, would imo confirm he is leaving you. But no announcement as to where he is going.

We can get another averge centre it's fine. Were not gonna get beat 200-0 every week if he leaves. If he gets in the England squad and is amazing at wire then yeah I'll hold my hands up and say we miss him. But he's not been amazing this year as he. He migh do a flick pass once every 4 games that works. I'm not gonna cry. This is only my opinion

Statistically he has a very high error count when you look on the SL stats site. Far too high for a centre.

Both 100% spot on.

When was the last time he had a run in the team at half back? He was kept out of the half back position by the inspired signings of Jeremy Smith and then to compound the misery further Matty Smith.

I'll throw a question into the pot on this.

Your the owner of a rugby league team and your best and brightest young talent for some time is continually either being ignored for selection or played out of position what do you do?

I think that at some point Wilky needs to put his hand up and say he needed to grow a set earlier in the Racthford saga, he should have hauled SM into his office and said play him, what on earth could SM have done?

Every man and his dog knows that Ratchford should have played every game he was fit for last season instead of being dicked about by SM.

I fully expect to see him after Hodgson retires develop into one of the best attacking fullbacks in Britain.

FFS, he's a very gifted player and one who I would like to see for years to come in a Salford shirt. You'd believe from these postings he's another Donachie or Carige!

Point of interest BigPev, what exactly are these "with all our new funding streams"? We do NOT own the stadium nor most of the finances we get from them. We are, like many tenants in the housing market, renting from a mixture of public and private ownership. We may make sales from the programmes and maybe any extra once 5000/6000 fans pay entrance to cover the base level of the rent. Not beer sales, not food sales, nor much of the business "box" sales.

We could find it difficult to pay our way.

Note for MR: what sort of coach will allow such interference? History is littered with failed sports clubs where the directors thought they could select the team.

Why do you bother getting out of bed in the mornings??

You are the most pesimistic person I've ever encountered, tell you what let's just stay at the Willows and politely ask the last fan to give it up as a bad job to turn the lights out.

And as for what kind of coach I don't really care, maybe if he had have done it might have made SM sack it sooner rather than drag the club I love with a passion from one disaster to another.

Dont think the staidum deal is THAT bad....else it wouldnt be worth moving

Ive been told...we get all gate receipts...all 'corporate box' money (although we'll be using the stadium catering so they still get a chunk'....but we dont get kisosk/beer money. So in theory, when you take into account the cost of maintaining the willows....even a small increase in fans/corporate should give us more money to spend. in theory.

Gutted he's leaving. sums up the disaster this season has been.
sitting here wondering why we bother. 3 year into a franchise , about to move to a new stadium , new coach , still cannot hold onto our best players , so what was the chuffin point ?

So what?

A young player decides to follow a different path. He's hardly a Salford Legend, as much as I like him as a player. He hasn't exactly set the world alight either, moments of magic interspersed with average displays. Now that could be down to our former regime not utilising him correctly or the fact that he actually isn't as good as his hype (yet).

I don't wish him any ill and hope that he goes on and becomes what he has the potential to be, I just think some fans seem to think that he is a RL Messiah when in fact he is just a young lad with a bit of talent.

It's not the Clubs fault, a player will decide what he wants and will go through with it regardless.

I agree entirely mate. Que sera sera and all that

I dont understand why fans think a player should be loyal to any club. He isn't from Salford, and he wasnt a child supporter.
If i were offered the same money at Wigan or Warrington, I would go. The idea of a sporting career is to win as much as possible in the short time available.
Look at Myler & Coley? Not world beaters by any stretch ( through Mylers backing up ability is exceptional, the rest of his scrum half play is average) but part of a sensational game at the weekend.
Why should Ratchford ignore the potential elsewhere to stay at Salford?

There are a few things mentioned that I totally agree with.

1st of all why didnt we sort this out last year ?
and why didnt JW pull rank and tell mcrae to play him instead of the woeful smith's ?

My personal opinion is that I'm not to fussed that he's on his way. Myler was hailed as the next big thing and to be honest take out his backing up and he is very average !! and our replacement for him....Daniel Holdsworth who has been a massive improvement.

Jordan Turner was another so called good young talent and tbh not seen him set the world alight at Hull.
Good luck to Stef and all but im sure Salford will move on stronger and better.