Welcome to Morson Sport
At Morson our sports sponsorships are borne out of an ambition to attract skilled, hard working individuals to build high performing teams, whether on the rugby pitch, in the ring or in the world of work.
Our sport stars showcase the behaviours which we champion; team work, dedication and the ability to over come challenges. Our work with our sport stars spans beyond sponsorship and enables us to inspire our clients, candidates and employee's and give back to the communities in which we work.
We are involved with a range of sports from boxing and MMA to Rugby Union, Rugby League and golf. Morson CEO, Ged Mason, co-owns premiership rugby team Sale Sharks, sponsors Paul Nicholls Stables and supports local sporting establishments Eccles Boxing Gym, West Freestyle Martial Arts and the Manchester Academy of Gymnastics.
Morson are notably main sponsors of Salford Red Devils Rugby League and legendary boxers Anthony Crolla and Callum Smith.
Keep up to date with the latest from Morson Sport
Morson are involved in a range of sports from Rugby League and Union to boxing, horse racing, golf and MMA. So, to keep up to date with the latest from Salford Red Devils plus so much more, subscribe to our sports newsletter via the link below.
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Morson sponsored Force Atlantic embark on epic 3,000 mile race
MORSON SPONSORSHIP NEWS | 3 MIN READ Morson sponsored Force Atlantic embark on their 3,000 mile race across the Atlantic to Antigua Each team will row in excess of 1.5 million oar strokes throughout the course of the journey 30 teams are participating from around the world Morson are proud to be the prime sponsor of the British Army’s Force Atlantic team in the Atlantic Challenge rowing race who start their epic row from the Canary Islands today! The premier event in ocean rowing, the Atlantic Challenge is a 3,000 mile row from San Sebastian in La Gomera, Canary Islands, to Nelson’s Dockyard, English Harbour, Antigua & Barbuda. The race takes place annually, with 30 teams participating from around the world. Morson’s inspiration for sponsorship of the Atlantic Challenge was two-fold. “Firstly, the company have a long track record of sponsoring athletes in various sports but until now, not rowing. Secondly and crucially, the commander of the Force Atlantic team, Lieutenant Colonel Rich Hall MBE, is the Commanding Officer of the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, the only Junior Entry Phrase 1 training establishment in the British Army.” The college provides long-term educational opportunities for young people from a variety of backgrounds, providing personal development and equipping them with leadership skills to succeed in life, either within or beyond the military. “This provides a diverse talent pool for the Army to draw from. Ultimately, this in turn improves the quality of our Morson Forces contractor base when those from the College leave the military and are looking for their next career move.” The Row Alongside the commander Lieutenant Colonel Rich Hall, the team consists of Captain Alex Walsh, Captain Chris Hames and the youngest of the team and a recent College Junior Solider graduate, Private Kian Helm. Captain Chris Hames, whose 30 years in the army includes 20 years with the Royal Army Physical Training Corps, spoke about the make-up of the diverse team and the race ahead. “The rank and age gap haven't been without issue. It's taken time for us to get to know each other, understand our strengths and areas where we need to support each other. There's a healthy respect for each other's experience and simply no other words needed.” To successfully complete the voyage in good time, the crew must be able to work together and harness each other’s skills and traits. “We all have our strengths which will help us massively. Kian is a great joker and keeps morale high. Skipper Rich is excellent at taking everything in and suggesting perfect plans and while I have a knack of problem solving when needed, Alex tempers my ‘just do it’ approach with analytical thinking.” The crew have been training hard to prepare for this huge undertaking. “The training has been both physically and mentally challenging, as you would expect. We have been concentrating on core, posterior chain exercises and of course rowing, both long steady distance and benchmark setting. The hardest benchmark setting to date is 90 minutes full effort on an indoor rower. That’s enough to put most people off!” As well as physical sessions on dry land, the team have to spend time out on the boat to get used to the conditions in which they will be working. Among the many dangers on the route, including 20ft waves, the team battle against the physical extremes faced by participating in such a long and strenuous challenge like salt sores and sleep deprivation. “Easily the toughest actual session so far was our recent three-day trip out in the boat. We went through all the drills as we will in real time and our return leg saw us fighting the tide and wind. It was hard and painful. It was the crew spending in excess of five hours constantly rowing and was absolutely what we needed to really test us.” It is estimated that each team will row in excess of 1.5 million oar strokes throughout the course of the journey. The team rely on a desalination device on board the boat to purify sea water for drinking. It’s estimated that each of the three crew members will burn between 5,000 and 10,000 calories a day, and so the dehydrated rations on board are high in calorific content, if low on taste. “They’re not too bad but they’ll quickly become boring. We do have snacks to dip into to break up the monotony of the rations.” For around six weeks, the three-man crew will live a life of strict and tiring routine – two hours rowing, two hours off, 24 hours a day. “It’s very tough but it’s something that we will adjust to. We’ll probably manage six hours sleep per day because certainly some of our two hours off will involve personal and boat maintenance.” Over €6 million has been raised for charity over the course of the last four races, but the members of the crew are all driven to make the row a huge success for other reasons. “We all have our own personal agenda, but more importantly we have a collective objective. As well as our key objective to raise money for The Soldier’s Charity, we want to show the Army as a professional organisation who have the best build up and delivery of all the teams.” Tied into this message is one about the value of ex-forces veterans in the world beyond the military, as Chris reflects. “Often, serving personnel may not see the value they hold to employers - simply by being disciplined enough to turn up to work on time and work hard. Also, often if veterans are leaving the services young, having a mortgage and paying bills are alien concepts and will be a real shock. Every bit of help provided is gold dust and in particular Morson's help in the transition process provides that comfort blanket and ensures individuals are not alone in realising their worth as they transition into civilian life.” As for what happens when the Force Atlantic team transition across the ocean and finally reaches Antigua: “I can't speak for the whole team but I suspect I will simply want to walk on the land, have space to move, a beer… oh and sleep!” We wish the team good luck and a safe and speedy journey! We'll be posting regular updates on their progress so come back to the blog for the latest info. Follow the race live!
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The best of Morson Sport: 2019 in review
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ From the worlds of rugby union, boxing, horse racing and now rugby league, we look back at our sporting highlights that defined 2019 #TeamMorson Overcoming Challenges in Sport and Business Event This past April we arranged the biggest event on the Morson sporting calendar, our ‘Overcoming Challenges in Business and Sport’ event at Hotel Football. Dominic McGuinness hosted an acclaimed panel from various sporting disciplines with Bryan Robson, Ricky Hatton, Mark Cueto and Harry Derham all sharing their stories of success and lessons learnt. During the panel, Bryan Robson reminisced on his Premier League title wins and how Sir Alex helped him transfer his skills into management, whilst Ricky Hatton looked back on his famous Vegas fights and world title wins. Ex-England and Sale Sharks player, Mark Cueto, also discussed his playing career and his move into the commercial world with the sharks. With the event taking place prior to the Grand National, Harry Derham highlighted how the major race has increased in scale in the modern era and offered advice on ones to watch for his fellow panelists. The event was brilliant in highlighting the ups and downs on the road to success, the importance of mentors and the incredible sporting moments Morson have been involved in over the past few years. We couldn’t have been prouder to bring such admired athletes together in front of a captivated audience and look to hold similar events in the years to come. Boxing This year saw Morson's array of world class boxers competing on some of the grandest stages in the sport. From the Staples Centre in LA to the world-renowned Madison Square Garden in New York, this was undoubtedly the biggest platform for our fighters since Ricky Hatton competed against Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas back in 2007. Anthony Crolla Anthony Crolla secured a dream match-up with one of the most admired and awe-inspiring athletes in the sport, Vasyl Lomachenko, back in April. Even though Anthony came up short, it was a massive testament to how far the Moston man had come. From being counted out early in his career, to surviving a life-threatening injury and then going on to fight the sport’s elite, after winning a world title himself. After securing the biggest pay day of his career, Anthony turned to coaching throughout the summer, as he guided Dylan Evans to a couple of impressive wins. We followed Crolla during his first night as a coach at Kieran Farrell’s show in May and it was brilliant to see him on the other side of the ropes, sharing all the knowledge he has learnt from the sport over the years with a young, up and coming talent. With talk of retirement being in the background for the past couple of years, the former WBA champion decided that November was the right time to enter the ring for the last time at the place he had made his own, the Manchester Arena. A comfortable win over Frank Urquiaga served as the final bow for Crolla and he reflected on his illustrious career at a recent panel event at Adamson House. We couldn’t be prouder for one of the great representatives we have had over the years. Callum Smith Callum Smith began the year raising awareness for autism at our Q&A event in Liverpool alongside his brothers, Paul and Stephen. During the event the three brothers gave an insight into their family’s experience taking care of their 18- year old sister, Hollie, who struggles with severe autism. This was an informative event for a great cause and allowed the attending audience to get to know Liverpool’s most famous boxing family even more. Callum returned to the ring on one of the biggest cards in recent history on June 1st as he served as the co-main event to Anthony Joshua vs Andy Ruiz at a sold-out Madison Square Garden. Smith retained his super-middleweight world titles in dominant fashion as he stopped Hassan N’Dam in the third round. Next up for Smith was mandatory challenger, John Ryder in a fight that many believed would be a straightforward victory for the Morson fighter. The fight turned out to be tougher than expected, with John Ryder putting in a valiant effort that forced Callum to dig deep to secure the victory on points. This now places the 29-year-old in position to fight some of the biggest names in the sport in 2020 with Canelo, Genady Golovkin and Billy Joe Saunders all on the radar. The Best of the Rest We predicted that Morson's Nathan Gorman would compete in one of the most anticipated heavyweight fights of the year against fellow rising star, Daniel Dubois and that finally happened in July. The fight was an all-out war whilst it lasted, with both men having success in the opening rounds. It was always going to be a case of whoever landed the bigger shot first, had a high likelihood of sealing the win and in this case, it was Daniel Dubois. The 22-year-old secured the first knockdown in the third round and finished the fight in the fifth. History has shown that some of the greatest world champions have been made through growing from their experience from early setbacks, and we have no doubt that Nathan will come back stronger than ever in 2020. Elsewhere, Robbie Davies Jr went 2-1 in his three fights this year. Winning the European super-lightweight title against Joe Hughes and narrowly being defeated in a fight of the year contender by Lewis Ritson means that the Liverpudlian is still in line for some intriguing fights next year. Kieran Farrell continued to grow his brand as a promoter and trainer, with a number of brilliant fight nights from Kieran Farrell Promotions in the Greater Manchester Area this year. Kieran was also in the corner of his brother, Nathan, who made his pro-debut this year and ended the year 3-0. After Kieran watched Nathan battle depression and a career threatening injury, seeing his brother fight on two of Eddie Hearn’s biggest domestic shows has got to be up there with the career best moments for Team Morson’s Kieran Farrell. Rugby Union Sale Sharks’ steady growth continued as the side competed for a top four position for much of the second half of the 18/19 season. However, slip ups in winnable games such as Newcastle and Worcester saw the Sharks finish the season in seventh. Despite missing out on a targeted Champions Cup qualifying top six spot, Steve Diamond’s side still secured a place in Europe’s elite competition due to being the highest ranked non-qualifying club from the same league as the Champions Cup winner. Heading into the 19/20 season, Steve Diamond recruited an array of international talent with the likes of the Du Preez brothers and Akker van Der Merwe reinforcing an already stacked squad. Key stars such as Faf De Klerk, Tom Curry and AJ MacGinty were missed at the beginning of the season due to representing their respective countries at the World Cup from September until November. It was a very strong showing from Sale on the world stage, with four players representing the club in the final between South Africa and England and it was ultimately Faf De Klerk’s South Africa that were crowned champions. We caught up with Faf, Tom Curry, Mark Wilson and Valery Morozov at Sale Sharks Supporter’s Club’s panel event, as the four reflected on their experiences from Japan and looked ahead to the upcoming season with their club. Sale currently sit at fourth in the Premiership, after an impressive win over league leaders, Northampton at the weekend has set up a promising season ahead. Rugby League Morson were proud to join Salford Red Devils as headline sponsors heading into the 2020 Super League season. The Grand Final runners up represented Morson in the Old Trafford game against St Helens, sporting our famous caps and will be proudly wearing Morson on their home and away jerseys next year. We look forward to adding coverage to a new sport in rugby league and will be following Salford every step of the way Horse Racing Earlier in the year we travelled to Somerset for Paul Nicholls annual press day ahead of Cheltenham. The event served as an opportunity to watch the Cheltenham runners train, be paraded and have exclusive discussions with Paul Nicholls and Harriet Tucker. One of the proudest moments for Morson in the horse racing world this year was Harry Cobden guiding ‘Give me a Copper to victory at Wincanton and taking home the badger beer trophy. The victory was met with elation as Paul, Ged Mason and Sir Alex Ferguson celebrated their win as owners. We will be visiting Somerset prior to Cheltenham in the new year and look forward to seeing Paul’s continued success. 2019 has been another brilliant year for Morson on the sporting stage with world titles and races won, careers celebrated and a new club welcomed to Team Morson. We congratulate all of our ambassadors for their achievements this year and are proud to be represented by both great athletes and great people.
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Sale Sharks 48-10 Harlequins: Game Day Highlights
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ A Scintillating six-try demolition of Harlequins saw the Sharks start 2020 in perfect fashion in front of a packed AJ Bell stadium! Match Report: The Sharks made good ground through the Du Preez brothers in the opening few minutes and pressed into the Quins 22. Just as Sale were looking increasingly likely to score, a loose ball was gathered by Gabs Ibitoye, who subsequently kicked his way through the Sharks 22 to go over. Smith added the extras and the away side had an early 0-7 lead. Sale quickly looked for a reply and the visitors were soon penalised in their 22. Rob du Preez successfully kicked for the three points. The Sharks continued to show their hunger in attack in the following minutes and a great inside pass from Rob du Preez put Akker through, who charged over. This was the prolific hooker’s tenth try of the season. Rob du Preez followed up with the conversion and the home side were deservedly ahead, after an action-packed opening ten minutes. Just as Quins successfully countered with an end to end try in the opening minutes, Sale followed suit with one of their own in the 21st minute. The away side looked to be clear through, until Luke James tackled Goneva and regained possession. Sam James set McGuigan on the chase with his hack down field and he offloaded back to Sam for the try. Rob du Preez made the following kick from out wide and Sale led 17-7. Quins put the Sharks defence under a pressure with a series of attacks in the next ten minutes and managed to reduce the deficit to seven points through a Marcus Smith penalty, after the home side were penalised for offside. The home side added another try before half-time as Luke James drove through the Quins defence from the 22 line to go over. Rob du Preez was good for the extras again and Sale entered the break 24-10 after a scintillating 40 minutes. The Sharks began the second half with more of the same as they charged towards the sticks in search of a fourth try. Quins conceded another penalty in front of the posts in the 48th minute and Rob du Preez dispatched to bring the score to 27-10. Sale eventually got their fourth try of the night and the bonus point in the 66th minute as Webber went over at the back of a maul and Rob added the extras. The Sharks now had a 34-10 lead heading into the final 14 minutes. The home side didn’t show any signs of slowing down as the game drew to a close, with Ashton and Van Rensberg finding the time to add to the score with their tries. AJ MacGinty made no mistakes with the conversions and the Sharks recorded a well-deserved bonus-point win, after a relentless attacking display. Post-Match Thoughts: Steve Diamond was particularly impressed with the fact that his side never took the foot off the pedal throughout the duration of Friday’s match: “It’s the first time this year we’ve done it, so I’m happy with the result. We did well in the first half, first seven/eight minutes of the second half we weathered a storm and too that penalty that took us more than two scores. That seemed to take away any anxiety and we opened up as best we could really. If you run hard and create momentum and we managed to do that” Another positive was the nature of the Sale performance, given that they were missing one of their most prized assets: “I though they responded really well to the injury to Faf last week, Faf’s the heartbeat of the team and Cliffy came in and did his job. He box kicked really well, he cleared really well and he got the ball into Rob du Preez’s hands. I was impressed with Valery Morozov’s performance, he was dominant when he came on and I don’t know how you couldn’t be pleased with a performance like that. It sends us into the top four where we need to be” Sale now return to European action this week as they travel to France to face familiar foes, La Rochelle. We look forward to seeing another great Sharks performance! Sharks XV 15. L.James, 14. C.Ashton, 13. S. James, 12. R. Janse van Rensberg, 11. B. McGuigan, 10. R. Du Preez, 9. W.Cliff, 8. D. Du Preez. 7. T. Curry, 6. J. Ross, 5. JL. Du Preez, 4. B.Evans, 3. WG. John, 2. A. van der Merwe, 1. R.Harrison Replacements: 16. R. Webber, 17. V. Morozov, 18. J. Cooper-Wooley, 19. J.Phillips, 20. B. Curry, 21. G.Warr, 22. AJ MacGinty, 23. M.Yarde Quins XV 15. R. Chisholm, 14. G. Ibiotoye, 13. C.Murley, 12. P. Lasike, 11. V. Goneva, 10. M. Smith, 9. D. Care, 8. T. Lawday, 7. C. Robshaw, 6. J. Chisholm, 5. M. Symons, 4. S. Lewies, 3. K. Sinckler, 2. E. Elia, 1. J. Marler Replacements: 16. J.Musk, 17. S. Garcia Botta, 18. W. Collier, 19. T. Cavubati 20. S. Kunatani, 21. M. Landajo, 22. B. Herron, 23. A.Morris Attendance – 8,579
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Salford Red Devils | A look ahead to the 2020 Super League season!
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Salford Red Devils stars Mark Flanagan and Joey Lussick give us their pre-season thoughts ahead of another highly anticipated Super League season! The 2020 Super League season will mark the first in which Morson will be on board with last year’s Grand Finalists, Salford Red Devils. Rugby League represents a new addition to the array of sports we have covered over the years and Red Devils forward, Mark Flanagan shared his excitement about the season ahead as a part of Team Morson: “I’m a big sports fan, I’ve seen what Morson have been involved with in other sports; whether that be horse racing, boxing or rugby. A local company being involved with a Greater Manchester rugby league team in Salford is great for us and it’s great for their brand as well" He continued: "Hopefully we can have a bit more success than last season, obviously getting to the Grand Final was a great achievement, but going one step further would be great for us as a club” Salford have been training intensely during their pre-season for the past couple of months and showcased a glimpse of what is to come in their comfortable 52-4 victory over Swinton Lions this past weekend. 24-year-old hooker, Joey Lussick described the mentality throughout the side heading into a new year and a fresh challenge: “Pre-season’s been tough, it’s always a tough time of year. Many people wrote us off last year, we’ve just been ripping in as much as we can during this time. We know where we’re capable of finishing this year but the main thing is getting off to a good start and trying to keep consistent throughout the year” With the departure of last season’s Super League Man of Steel award winner, Jackson Hastings and several new signings joining the club, Mark Flanagan believes 2020 will be a year of new beginnings and further growth for the Reds: "It’s been a very transitional pre-season. We’ve lost seven or eight players and brought in the same amount but the mood in camp is probably the best it’s been in a couple of years. There’re some great personalities that have joined the club, on the surface it may seem like we’ve lost some great players but we’ve gained some as well. We’ve trained really hard and bonded off the field which is really important” The first game of the season sees a rematch of last year’s Grand Final as Salford travel to St Helens on January 31st. Flanagan gave his initial reaction to the fixture list and made it clear that retribution is in mind: “Payback! We owe them one. They’re a great side, they’ve pretty much kept the same squad as last year and they’ve been the top team for the last couple of years. It’s one of my former clubs and it’s a great test for us early in the season” Lussick added: “Not many people get to play in Grand Finals their whole career, to fall short was disappointing but to make it there in the first place was a great achievement. Round 1 we’re going to come out guns blazing!” We will be following Salford this weekend as they take on Leigh Centurions in their second pre-season friendly at the AJ Bell, so watch out for our coverage across our social media channels and show your support!
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Salford Red Devils 40 - 14 Leigh Centurions: Game Day Highlights
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Salford Red Devils comfortably beat Leigh Centurions in preseason at the AJ Bell Stadium Morson's man of the match Rhys Williams speaks to us about the match and the coming season This past Saturday saw Salford Red Devils storm past a game and valiant Leigh side, as their attack proved to be too much for the away team, with seven tries on the day. Joey Lussick’s early try was cancelled out minutes later by Leigh’s Liam Hood. However, the home side quickly established their dominance with tries from Williams, Sio and Greenwood setting them apart at half time. The Centurions began the second half the livelier side and looked to get back into the game, with Sa’u marking his return to the AJ Bell with a try against his former club. Despite Leigh’s attempted resurgence, Salford further extended their lead with Williams getting his second of the day. Johnson and Chamberlain added another two tries to seal an impressive 40-14 win for the Red Devils. Morson's Man of the Match, Rhys Williams, commented on his try scoring efforts and gave his reaction to the victory: “It’s obviously pleasing to get the win and get a few tries. There were a few aspects where we let ourselves down and didn’t control the ball as well as we’d like, so there’s a few building blocks but overall we’re fairly buzzing” He continued: “I think Leigh had a lot of momentum in that second half, through our own fault I think… They’re a good side, they’re tough to beat and it’s a great test for us in pre-season" The Welsh international looks like he is more than finding his feet at his new club, with three tries in his first two matches. The winger gave an insight into life at Salford: “Obviously we got to the Grand Final last year but we want to go one further and win it this year. The standard of training is really high, everyone is a good bloke so when you’ve got that in place, it’s easy to slot in as long as you work hard” Next up is a step-up in competition against fellow Super League side, Warrington Wolves and the 30-year-old thinks it’ll be a more than fitting test ahead of the new season: “They won the Challenge Cup last year which shows how much pedigree they’ve got. You’ve only got to look at their squad to see the calibre of players they have so it’s great to have that next step in pre-season training and see where we’re at” Morson became headline sponsors of Salford Red Devils shortly before their Super League Grand Final appearance at Old Trafford. We will next be covering Salford at the AJ Bell when they take on Toronto Wolfpack in a few weeks, keep an eye out for content before that!
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Salford Red Devils Media Day Highlights - Ian Watson, Chris Atkin and Jack Ormondroyd On Upcoming Season!
The squad recently returned from a pre-season training trip to Spain, which Watson saw as a key team-building experience: “That’s the big thing, the trip to Spain was more about off-field than on-field. It was about getting the players to interact with each other. When you’re away from home, you get to know each other as a person, rather than just a rugby player. That was the big thing for us, that we gel as a side” The motto of the club throughout last year’s success was ‘Together Stronger’ and Ormondroyd has immediately felt a sense of family at his new club: “They couldn’t have been more welcoming, it’s been brilliant from the start. I think being so close knit goes a long way, at Featherstone Rovers last year we were a really tight knit group and we did some really good things. I think that played a massive part in what we did last year and hopefully this year at Salford we can do the same” The Red Devils have had an impressive pre-season so far, with two convincing wins over Swinton and Leigh. Chris Atkins feels the side is continuously building in confidence heading into their final warm-up game against fellow Super League side, Warrington Wolves: “I think the performances might not seem as important in pre-season, but we still go out there and win. It’s about building through these friendlies and getting prepared for that round one game against St Helens, it’s massively important to hit the ground running on that first one. Going into Leigh was the gradual progression of intensity and commitment that Ian wanted. I think we showed that against Leigh, the desire to set those standards early” The 26-year-old also gave his thoughts heading into the season opener against Grand Final winners, St Helens, and the importance of building momentum throughout the upcoming year: “The goal is to go one step further than last season. If we can start the season with a win or at least, a top performance, then we can build on to peak at the right time. That’s what happened last year, they went really well into the back of the season and won the games when it mattered. Obviously, they came up short in the final but St Helens are a quality team and I’m sure they’ll be fighting for silverware at the end of the season, as hopefully we will be” Embracing new talent is integral to the growth of any professional sports club and Ian Watson described the biggest thing he assesses when recruiting signings: “The big thing for us is the people, we’re a small squad. To achieve things and winning things we need to be close knit and work well together. We focus on the character of the person, whether they will actually fit. We do massive research on them as a person first, before them as a player and that’s been really successful. I think this group is the best we’ve had in terms of character and we’ll hopefully transfer that to the field” Watson’s history with the club runs deep as a Salfordian and a former player, but despite the magnitude of the heights of last season, the Red Devils coach never got carried away and made it clear that the focus was always on the task at hand: “Once we got to the semi-final against Wigan and then the Grand Final, you could feel the expectation build in the local community. There were people contacting me from Australia that I knew from Eccles U11s team and they were coming across for the final! People were coming from all over the world to see Salford play in a final because they’d not been there for such a long time” He continued: “You kind of miss little bits of it until you get right to the brink of it and then you see the effect it has on everyone else. Other than that, you’re quite oblivious because you’re in your own little bubble sometimes, that’s what we like to be in rather than focus on the outside noise” We look forward to covering Salford’s Super League journey throughout the 2020 season, starting with their first home game against Toronto on February 8th Stay tuned!
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Exeter Chiefs 19-22 Sale Sharks | Game Day Highlights
The Sharks got off to a strong start, as the home side gave away a penalty in the seventh minute for a late tackle on Hammersley and Rob Du Preez opted for the tee. The South African made no mistake from 40 metres out, and Sale led 0-3. Sale continued to mount a series of attacks on the Chiefs defence in the next few minutes, and a great move saw a charging Dan du Preez put through Webber, who found Ashton out wide to go over. Rob du Preez’s follow up steered just wide of the posts. A period of non-stop pressure in the Sharks 22 from Exeter followed and eventually, the home side got over through Phil Dollman. Steenson missed the extras and the scores were 5-8, after an intensely fought opening 30 minutes at Sandy Park. The away side immediately looked to respond and increase their lead, and a brilliant move from a line out sent Will Cliff down the wing. The scrum-half found Jean Luc du Preez, who coolly offloaded to his twin, Dan, to score. Rob du Preez was good for the extras and the Sharks were in front by ten points. Just as the game seemed to calm as half-time approached, the ultimate opportunist, Byron McGuigan, intercepted a loose pass in midfield and ran under the posts from halfway against his former side. Rob du Preez converted and the scores were at 5-22, after an incredible first half from the Sharks. The opening 10 minutes of the second half saw each side press for the next score, but both defences remained strong in this evenly matched period, in which possession was shared. Exeter pushed the Sale defence hard heading into the 65-minute mark, as they made good ground by winning a number of scrum-penalties and relentlessly pressed towards the try line. Despite a period of staunch defending from the Sharks, the hosts eventually got over through Sam Simmonds. Steenson was good for the conversion, and thus reduced Sale’s lead to ten points heading into the final ten minutes. Exeter set the game up for a nail-biting finale as Dollman offloaded to O’Flaherty, who dived over. After further tense moments of TMO checking, the try was eventually given and Steenson converted. Despite the late charge from the home side, the Sharks held on to a hard fought and epic first win in six years at Sandy Park. Steve Diamond reflected on the well-deserved win with the media: “We got our noses in front first half. Knowing Exeter as we do, they were always going to come back. They got the rub of the green with the try, which made it pretty intense for me certainly! But it was a good performance, we’ve been playing reasonably well. We targeted this game because we’ve always run them close here, we’ve only won once out of ten games so yeah I’m delighted” The Sharks have a well-earned break this week, before they face Saracens in the Premiership Rugby Cup semi-final a week on Friday at the AJ Bell. Sale Sharks Starting XV: 15. Simon Hammersley, 14. Chris Ashton, 13, Sam James, 12. Rohan Janse van Rensburg, 11. Byron McGuigan, 10. Robert du Preez, 9. Will Cliff; 1. Ross Harrison, 2. Rob Webber, 3. Jake Cooper-Woolley, 4. Bryn Evans, 5. Jean-Luc du Preez, 6. Jono Ross (Capt.) 7. Ben Curry, 8. Daniel du Preez. Replacements: 16. Curtis Langdon, 17. Coenie Oosthuizen, 18. Will-Griff John, 19. James Phillips, 20. Matt Postlethwaite, 21. Gus Warr, 22. Luke James, 23. Marland Yarde. Exeter Chiefs Starting XV: 15. Phil Dolman, 14. Tom O’Flaherty, 13. Ian Whitten, 12. Sam Hill, 11. Olly Woodburn, 10. Gareth Steenson, 9. Stu Townsend; 1. Ben Moon, 2. Elvis Taione, 3. Enrique Pieretto, 4. Dave Dennis (Capt.) 5. Jonny Hill, 6. Dave Ewers, 7. Jacques Vermulen, 8. Sam Simmonds. Replacements 16. Jordan Poole, 17. Alec Hepburn, 18. Marcus Street, 19. Sam Skinner, 20. Matt Kvesic, 21. Jack Maunder, 22. Harvey Skinner, 23. Tom Hendrickson
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Sale Sharks 28-7 Saracens: Game Day Highlights
Match Report: The Sharks wasted no time settling into the game and made an immediate impact, as Denny Solomona crashed over for a first-minute try in his return to the side. Rob du Preez added the extras as the home side sent a clear message of attacking intent to the inexperienced Sarries side from the get go. A dropped ball from Saracens wasn’t to go unpunished in the 15th minute, as Jono Ross set Marland Yarde free, and the winger used his blistering pace to draw his man and send Will Cliff clear through for the second try of the night. Rob du Preez made no mistake with the follow up, and Sale were cruising with a 14-0 lead after an explosive opening 15 minutes. Things went from bad to worse for the away side, as a line-out move straight off the training ground sent Ben Curry over unchallenged, and Rob du Preez was on the money with the conversion again. Despite the efforts of Saracens’ attempts to find an answer and gather some momentum at the close of the first half, their threats were thwarted comfortably by the Sale defence and the score-line remained unchanged at half-time. The away side continued to hunt for their first try in the opening ten minutes of the second half, as Saracens had the majority of possession in this period, but failed to find a break through. Saracens’ persistence in their attacking pursuits eventually paid off as Segun intercepted Will Cliff’s offload and ran in to score. Whitely converted and the away side reduced the deficit to 14 points. The conceded try seemed to re-awaken Sale, with Akker van der Merwe re-establishing the Sharks’ lead, as he charged through the Sarries defence to go over. Rob du Preez added the extras. No further scores were added from either side before full-time, and Sale go on to face Harlequins in the final at the AJ Bell on March 15th as they get one step closer to a first major trophy since 2006. Post-Match Thoughts: Steve Diamond gave his post-match reaction and discussed the depth of talent in the squad, that has been so crucial to the success of the side so far this year: “Yeah pleased to get the win. I think we made hard work of it in a couple of areas, but maybe that’s what you get when you give them a week off. Saracens put a mixed squad together who are always going to fight for stuff, but we got the win” He continued: “We’ve got a lot of good players, the du Preez twins are good carriers as are the Curry twins. We’ve got a good squad, just get the cohesion there and we’ll go alright” Sale return to Premiership action this weekend as they play Saracens for the second week in a row, this time at the Allianz Park. We hope to see the Sharks’ great form continue and wish the lads the best of luck. Attendance - 7,992 Sale Sharks Starting XV: 15. Simon Hammersley, 14. Denny Solomona, 13, Sam James, 12. Rohan Janse van Rensburg, 11. Marland Yarde, 10. Robert du Preez, 9. Will Cliff; 1. Coenie Oosthuizen, 2. Rob Webber, 3. Jake Cooper-Woolley, 4. Bryn Evans, 5. Jean-Luc du Preez, 6. Jono Ross (Capt.) 7. Ben Curry, 8. Daniel du Preez. Replacements: 16. Akker van der Merwe, 17. Ross Harrison, 18. Will-Griff John, 19. James Phillips, 20. Mark Wilson, 21. Gus Warr, 22. Tom Curtis, 23. Luke James. Saracens Starting XV: 15. Matt Gallagher, 14. Ali Crossdale, 13. Duncan Taylor, 12. Dom Morris, 11. Elliot Obatoyinbo 10. Alex Goode, 9. Tom Whiteley; 1. Titi Lamositele, 2. Tom Woolostencroft, 3. Josh Ibuanokpe, 4. Callum Hunter-Hill 5. Joel Kpoku, 6. Nick Isiekwe, 7. Sean Reffell, 8. Andy Christie. Replacements 16. Kapeli Pifeleti, 17. Sam Crean, 18. Sam Wainwright, 19. Jon Kpoku, 20. Ollie Stonham, 21. Alex Day, 22. Alex Lozowksi, 23. Rotimi Segun
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Salford 24-16 Toronto Wolfpack | Game Day Highlights & Sonny Bill Williams exclusive!
The away side took the lead after a fiercely fought opening ten minutes, as Gary Wheeler made an immediate impact with his introduction to the field by getting over. Blake Wallace missed the follow up, but Toronto led 0-4. It wasn’t long before Salford levelled things, as Kevin Brown scored his first try for his new side and Tui Lolohea gave the Red Devils the lead from the tee heading into the break. A pair of tries from Lolohea and Williams extended the home side’s lead at the beginning of the second half, with Williams sprinting 70 metres to score being the highlight of the afternoon. The end to end nature of the game continued, as Gary Wheeler got his second try of the day and Brad Singleton soon followed with his first score for the Canadian outfit. Successive conversions from Blake Wallace meant that the resilient Wolfpack had levelled proceedings. This gave Salford a wakeup call at a crucial time, as Dan Sarginson and Niall Evalds both got on the scoresheet with tries in the final ten minutes, to give the home side their first win of the Super League season. Ian Watson gave his post-match reaction: "I thought it was a real good win for us. I think they’re playing with confidence obviously from the back end of last year, again they’re a team that’s reasonably settled as they know their system and know how each other play. At the moment they’ve had real dry days so it suits their style of play for an offloading team like Toronto, I think they’ll cause a lot of teams problems this season" We also caught up with cross-code mega star, Sonny Bill Williams, who gave us his exclusive thoughts on Toronto’s first two games and how he is settling at the club: “As a team, pretty disappointed we didn’t get the win today. We improved tremendously from the first week and for me there isn’t a mistake if there’s learning from it, and we definitely learnt from last week. For myself individually, last week I felt like I was playing league like a rugby player whereas this week I played league like a league player. I’m really happy with how I went”
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Jordan James on the challenges of life after Rugby and establishing his new 'CULT' business
Transitioning from sport into the world of business is no easy feat and is a topic that was the basis of our marquee sports panel event last year, which featured the likes of Ricky Hatton and Mark Cueto discussing how they adapted to leaving all they had known to pursue new ventures. This week we had the opportunity to hear another similar success story, as former Salford Red Devils and Wales international, Jordan James gave an insight into his experiences of leaving rugby league to becoming an entrepreneur at the latest Club 13 event. Since retiring from rugby league, James has gone on to open both a barbers and a coffee shop in Moston under his ‘CULT’ brand alongside his wife, Harriet. However, the path to establishing his own brand and business was filled with hardships, as Jordan explained how being away from the sport he adored was a massive struggle long before retirement: “When you’re a rugby player, being injured is the most difficult thing you’ve ever had to face, all you want to do is play. When you’re told you can’t, mentally you struggle. You start turning to drink or whatever” The 39-year-old highlighted the importance of young athletes having a plan and vision for a career after sport, as this was something that many put on the backburner until it can be sometimes too late to find that passion: “When I was 27/28 no one approached me about what I was going to do at the end of my career, at that age you’re living from contract to contract and you think you’re invincible. I think the way it’s going now with helping players is great, it should have been happening 15 years ago” He continued: “It was quite harrowing going from playing for Wigan, saying that you were going to get a contract, to having that taken away from you last minute. I stepped into a coaching role and thought it was for me but it wasn’t, I was a frustrated player and an even more frustrated coach. I wasn’t a good enough player to sit on the hundreds and thousands I’d have earnt in my playing career, I know I’m going to work until I’m 60-70” Being a barber was something that Jordan had been interested in since his playing days and a four-week barbering course in London set him a solid foundation to build his future career on. Despite the dedication and effort James has put in to achieve his goals over the years, he credits the mentors in his close family for learning from their successes and applying that in his own work: “My wife’s dad had six hairdressers in London at the height of the industry and everyone knew her dad. My mum ran pubs all her life on her own and ran three BnB’s right before she died. She saw the first shop and was mad up that I went into business, following her footsteps. Having mentors of people around us that had done that sort of thing was a great help to us” The idea of creating a family atmosphere in his CULT shops is something that Jordan believed was going to be vital to any success the company was going to have from the get-go and this has proved to be very true: “We built a whole brand of being a cult, of being a family and I can pretty much go for a beer with any of my clients. I feel like having that family ethos really gets people buying into your brand and it helps the social media side of things a lot. I put a post-up and I know that most of my clients will share it, but most of my friends won’t. It’s the clients that you build that relationship with, they’ll generally help you through your business more than your friends will” Working alongside his wife has been something that Jordan has cherished during this time and believes it brings the best out of both of them professionally: “It’s so easy working with her, I actually prefer working with her than any of the other lads because we get on so well. Now we have two shops, so we don’t work together as much because we have to split our time which isn’t the best, but business comes first” The former Salford prop gave three traits that he took from sport into business, which he believes are universally crucial for success: “For me work ethic is one. Never quitting, being a rugby player you don’t quit, whether it’s injuries or anything you don’t quit if you want to be top of your game. Resilience of when things get tough as well. Any of them you take to a job, any manager or director will see them and realise you’ve got merit and anybody would snap you up” It was brilliant hearing Jordan’s story and we look forward to seeing his CULT business continue to prosper!
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Salford Red Devis 10-12 Huddersfield Giants: Game Day Highlights
The home side started the game the livelier side in the wet and windy conditions and thought they had opened the scoring on two occasions through Ken Sio. The Australian got over twice in the opening 15 minutes, but both efforts were thwarted by Huddersfield winger, Louis Senior, who tackled Sio into touch. Huddersfield made their next opportunity count immediately, as Adam O’Brien scored the first try of the game and Aiden Sezer successfully converted. This put the away side 0-6 up. Salford soon responded in the 24th minute, as Pauli Pauli’s charging run saw the home side make good ground and a quick flurry of passes found Sio on the right-hand side, who wasn’t going to be denied this time. Lolohea missed the chance to level the scores, and the Giants narrowly led 4-6 heading into half-time. The Red Devils showcased a statement of intent in the opening minutes of the second half, as Brown found Sarginson, who dived over to put the home side ahead. Lolohea made no mistakes with conversion this time, and Salford were 10-6 ahead. The unpredictable nature of the game continued however, as Senior scored out wide for the away side to draw Huddersfield level. Sezer missed the chance to put his side ahead with his following kick steering wide. This set up an intense final few minutes, as both sides looked for a late winner. Salford’s Kevin Brown was sent to the sin bin in the last five minutes against his former side and Huddersfield exploited the home side’s disadvantage, as the Red Devils gave away numerous penalties. Sezer opted for the tee in one of these instances and won the game for the away side, kicking between the sticks to give Huddersfield a late 10-12 victory. The nature of the game’s finale was unfortunate for Salford, who have many plus points to take away from the performance heading into Saturday’s home game against Leeds. Ken Sio gave us his exclusive post-match thoughts on an eventful outing for himself: “A lot of positives to take away, there were a few errors, especially from me as well. We’re just gonna take it as a positive. We’ll let it sink in, it’s gonna hurt but we’ll come back on Monday and review it” He continued: “Every week the team looks better and better. The more we can go into a game and feel confident with each other, we’ll have a good run and hopefully go all the way” Ian Watson reinforced this belief that despite the result, Salford are definitely heading in the right direction with their performances: “I thought it was a real good arm wrestle, two teams who competed until the last minute there. I think there’s certain areas to get better at, but I think it shows our improvement from the first game against St Helens where we were way off what we want to be known as, as a group. We were massively improved against Toronto and then I would say we were better today than we were against Toronto. We’re going in the right direction, we just need to fine tune a few things”
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Sale Sharks 36-3 Leicester Tigers: Game Day Highlights
An electric performance from hat-trick hero, Marland Yarde, inspired the Sharks to an impressive win, moving them to second in the Gallagher Premiership. Match Report: Leicester opened the scoring through Reid’s penalty inside the first three minutes, as the away side began the game the livelier team. Sale were penalised again a few minutes later, but Reid missed the chance to dispatch his second of the night, with his effort hitting the post. Sale searched for the first try of the game in the following ten minutes, with the du Preez brothers’ bustling runs causing problems for the Tigers. Rob du Preez looked to have set Yarde clean through after a great break from the Sharks, but play was stopped due to obstruction in the build-up, much to the frustration of the home side. The Sharks managed to take the lead in the 30th minute, as Bryn Evans charged down Van Poortvliet’s attempted clearance from the try-line and ran in unopposed. Rob du Preez’s conversion fell just short. The combination of Rob du Preez and Yarde wasn’t going to be denied for the second time of the night, as the South African put the electric winger through to charge over and double the home side’s lead. Rob du Preez was good for the conversion this time. The home side finished the half in style, as Coenie used his power to crash over from short range and Rob du Preez added the extras again. This gave the Sharks a 19-3 lead. Rob du Preez extended Sale’s advantage with a penalty, as the Sharks looked hungry for more points on the board with 25 minutes left to play. The du Preez and Yarde duo continued to flourish as Rob sent Marland through a gap in the Tigers’ defence at short range to get his second try of the night. Rob followed up with a beauty of a curler through the posts. Yarde showed his killer instincts again as he capitalised on a sublime kick from Sam James to get over for his hat-trick, sealing off a brilliant individual performance. Rob du Preez added the extras, capping off an emphatic 36-3 victory. Post-Match Thoughts: Despite the Sale finishing off the first half with three emphatic tries, Steve Diamond believed the 30 minutes that preceded were just as important: “Well I thought it was the first 30 minutes if I’m being honest where we kept the ball and had 70% possession. They didn’t have an answer to that really and we played against the wind really well. Second half was not dissimilar, we just tied to stay from getting frustrated and work the field position and get an opportunity to score the bonus point. But again, the main thing was to get the win, that’s why they kicked the goal which was good to see, but yeah delighted with it. It’s no secret that Sale are spoilt for choice with world class wingers and Dimes reiterated this healthy competition when discussing Marland Yarde’s hat-trick: “We’ve got four good wingers: Denny, Marland, Ashy and Byron. To stay in the spot, you’ve got to score tries and I can’t see him being dropped. The Sharks travel to Gloucester on Friday and will be looking to avenge their opening day defeat and continue their title charge in the process. Sale Sharks Starting XV: 15. Simon Hammersley, 14. Chris Ashton, 13, Sam James, 12. Luke James, 11. Marland Yarde, 10. Robert du Preez, 9. Will Cliff; 1. Coenie Oosthuizen, 2. Rob Webber, 3. Jake Cooper-Woolley, 4. Bryn Evans, 5. Jean-Luc du Preez, 6. Jono Ross (Capt.) 7. Mark Wilson, 8. Daniel du Preez. Replacements: 16. Curtis Langdon, 17. Ross Harrison, 18. Will-Griff John, 19. James Phillips, 20. Ben Curry, 21. Gus Warr, 22. Tom Curtis, 23. Denny Solomona. Leicester Tigers Starting XV: 15. Telusa Veainu, 14. Jonah Holmes, 13. Jaco Tuate, 12. Kyle Eastmond, 11. Jordan Olowofela 10. Noel Reid, 9. Jack Van Poortvliet; 1. Greg Bateman, 2. Tatafu Polota-Nau, 3. Dan Cole (Capt), 4. Tomas Lavanini 5. Will Spencer, 6. Hanro Liebenberg, 7. Tommy Reffell, 8. Ifereimi Boladau. Replacements 16. Jake Kerr, 17. Nephi Leatigaga, 18. Joe Heyes, 19. Joe Batley, 20. Harry Wells, 21. Sam Lewis, 22. Harry Simmons, 23. Johnny McPhillips
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