I hope the club are offering Ratchford a similar deal as to what was proposed to Myler, as I think he is definitely worth it and at present is a player that is in a high demand not just in our code of the sport. Com'on Ratch, please sign on the dotted line.

I just hope the club will do all they can to try and keep this talent at our club, same goes for 'Big' Ray also. Would be fantastic if they both signed on for long term deals.

I hope he makes the right deciton and decides to stay, the club have moved forward with new ground, New better players and are trying to clear the dead wood which have prevented us from moving on before.

He is only 22 another 3 years of development and he could be a world class centre.
Might be worth asking jordan turner about his deciton about leaving us, promised he'd be playing standoff for hull is currently playing centre the same position he finished @ salford, he's probably on a lot more money but hull ant exactly setting the world on fire are they?.

I just hope he thinks about his careers, looks at the bigger picture sees us as a club we are moving forward and makes the correct call, instead of taking the money and running of to somewhere where he will be a small cog in a machine rather than a big cog he is here.

We have to sign big ray if he wants to stay in superleague end of

How do you know what the right "decision" for him is?? For us as Salford fans the right decision would be for him to stay. What if Wigan were sniffing round him, as a Wiganer I'd expect the right decision would be to sign for them.

He could also look at the way Stephen Myler's career has gone in Union too. He is a much much better player IMO than Myler and Myler is/was on the verge of England honours as far as I know.

shhhhhhh

What if Ratchford reads this?

Nail, Hit, Head

Depends on the terms, is he guaranteed 1st team football?, is he good enough to play standoff for Wigan week in week out? At the moment no and Wigan you don't learn a trade you win, don't win and your out.

Stephen myers game suited union that's why he moved great kicking game that's about it.

just heard that the wire could be after him, oh no not again

If Wigan had any sense Sam Tomkins would be playing 6.

Can't see Ratchford has anything to gain by moving away from Salford now. On the other hand, if he lives up to all our expectations his next contract may be another matter.

Can't understand why Big Ray hasn't been signed up already. In the League Express this week it read as though he was simply waiting for the Reds to put an offer on the table. Failure to retain him would be a huge mistake. He's our best prop by far and we could do with signing someone his equal, not losing the best prop we've got.

Also can't understand why we're dragging our heels about signing a replacement for Bailey, surely there's someone out there?!

Someone huh? He sounds class!

It's a distinct possibility in 2012.



Deacon and Leuluai aren't getting any younger and Tomkins looks to be settled at full back.



Sam Tomkins, Goulding, Mcllorum, Hansen, Joel Tomkins, O'Loughlin, Prescott, O'Carroll, Mossop, Farrell, Tuson, Marsh and Charnley all seemed to have learnt a trade at Wigan.

What he said







I just wrote war and peace on Stef for it to dissapear can't b assed writing it again just ask KOTS my opinion he knows them best .

FB hasn't worked out too badly for them?! (or him)

We want him to stay,Mr Simms says he is part of are future,but Ratchford wants to be a stand off,
not a centre,I personally think he is the best stand off,at the club,so if he does want to play stand off,
and Wigan or Warrington,do come for him,and that's where they want him to play,he will go,wouldn't you.

Think more than anyone at the club Steff is the future, think also he is the best talent we have had for countless years nad makes Myler look like a rank outsider. Think Steff is a different character to Myler too and should he decide to go think he wouldn't switch off before the end of the year and go with dignity like Hodgy did a few years ago.

Like someone else has said I fear this is a case of the club putting the massive contract offer out to pre empt the back lash from us all when he goes.

DogPie are you one of our assistant coaches by any chance??

At the present time Holdsworth is the best stand off we have. The best teams have quality leaders at 6 and 7 who control the structure and direction of the play either side of the ball.

Ratchford needs to develop as a leader because he does not appear to be a natural leader in the mould of Tomkins at Wigan. He's been playing his best rugby in the centres where is ability to create opportunities his complementing Broughton's finishing speed well. He's worth retaining but not at any cost.

Radio Manchester played an interview with Ratchford a couple of weeks ago and asked him about the contract situation. His response was that `he loved it here' and was hoping `something could be sorted out shortly' (i.e. now!)

If you cast your minds back to when Myler was around he would often respond to the contract renewal question by stating that he `would let his agent sort out his future' and we all know how that turned out!

I personally think he'll sign.........

IMO the most important positions on the field are fB,SO,SH,H,LF out of that list of players ive highlighted the ones to my knowledge play regular in them positions (even though i dont rate o'loughlin as a ball playing looseforward he is a hatchit man runs around knocking peoples heads off imo) the rest are just good runners and good blockers, can you see wigan reaily trusting rachford to become a main pivot in their team when he isnt even one in ours? they havnt even got a coach like us next season who is to say rachfords face will fit their recruitment specifications

He is a talent this isnt in question but the following statment sums it up for me



i agree with all of the above our little pattern, holsworth, smith, godwin diamond is working a treat at the momement and Rachford being further out with the quality service and with his natural instinct to keep the ball alive with individual brilliance feeding Broughton who has pace to burn gives us a sharp attacking threat Which to me we havnt had since Maloney / Pinkney ran in 20 odd tries one season.

With the right coaching and sufficiant weight gain he could be an England Centre for sure in the next 3 years, great hands, great feet, good rugby brain, good defence would certainly give us somthing different from your bog standard 6'3 powerfull, straightline runner centre we have been use to over the years for gb and england
BUT he needs time to develop and at wigan i feel he wont get it, they will want him to be a world class centre / standoff now and if he doesnt perform they will buy a ozzie international that will.

Lets be talk about Coley for a second, yes he has won stuff, yes he is playing in a good team but he certainly for me isnt the player i saw in a salford shirt, he isnt using his freaky quick pace for such a big man, i ant seeing him run over people outwide being used as a extra centre when he was in the mood, wigan have just turned him into a prop who takes the ball up and tackles for 60 minutes

Not the andy coley we though he could have been if he hadnt have had his head turned, its a under use of his ability imo but at wigan i surpose coley doesnt need to turn it on as much because he is surrounded by talent who will carry him until he can be d to put a performance in.

I reaily do hope rachford gives the club a chance, he is still only young if he gets even better he could leave and try his best against the best in the world in oz in 3 years time with my best wishes

Excellent post.

Coley's situation is similar to that of Morley in Australia, the Roosters used Morley's power to good effect, but forgot that he was talented runner out wide.

I disagree slightly with the good runners and good blockers at Wigan comment, Liam Farrell has far more about his game. Possibly not big enough to play second row at international level, but GB need this guy to be groomed as the next 13. I wouldn't class Liam Farrell as a big 6 like Andy F or Scully were, but he reads the game really well and can make an excellent pass or offload. There seems to have been a recent switch from using the Loose Forward as an extra pivot to using the fullback - i.e. Slater, Patten, Tomkins and Lockyer (a little further back) - so with this in mind Liam Farrell could fit the mould of what a modern Loose Forward should be. Not quite a big 6, but more than just an extra second row.

I don't think Andy Coley will mind being made into "just a prop" seeing as he's been in play-offs, cup sembos and is a grand final winner

Like I said before he went to Wigan to win stuff immediately, rather than get his head right and become an even better player and develop with us.

Has he played for England / gb since his switch to Wigan? I'm guessing no so his personal performances have suffered since he was selected to tour oz while technically wearing the red shirt of salford

Come on Bobby that is absolute tripe and you know it, surely??
Andy Coley was a better player at Salford than he is now at Wigan??
If his performances for Wigan had suffered he wouldn't be a regular member of their team, Wigan just wouldn't put up with it, they'd have got shut of him.

Eddie Hemmings suggests Sonny Boy Williamson. Heard he's good.

You mean like all those years they won f**k all and built up a side for the future, which they are now reaping the benefits of?

And I think it's fair to say Coley's done alright for himself at Wigan... Ratchford may well think he can do the same, it's up to Salford to put together a good enough and persuasive enough offer to keep him here.

What about Hodgy and Robinson? They seem to have done ok since they left us. On your whacky theory that 'the only way is down' after leaving Salford do you not think that is because in recent years most of the players we have had are either over the hill, near retirement or just not good enough? So obviously the only way is down for them and shame on us for signing them. The few good young players we have that leave generally always do well, Myler, Coley, Robinson, Hodgson etc.