Reds edge towards drop

Salford were pushed a step closer to relegation from the engage Super League as they suffered a narrow defeat to Challenge Cup finalists St Helens at The Willows.

The Reds must win at least two of their three remaining games if they are to have any hope of overhauling Hull KR and avoiding a return to National League One after they were beaten 32-20 by the league leaders.

Salford led 14-12 after 50 minutes, but two tries in as many minutes put St Helens in the clear and they went on to win despite a spirited fight from Shaun McRae's side.

Ade Gardner opened and closed the scoring for Daniel Anderson's cup finalists, who will face Catalans Dragons at Wembley next weekend.

With that match in mind, Anderson named a weakened side but his gamble paid off to keep Saints ahead of Leeds at the top of the table.

There was little sign of an upset when Mike Bennett and Lee Gilmour combined to get winger Gardner over for the game's first try after only four minutes.

Teenager Stephen Tyrer made it 6-0 with the touchline conversion but Salford's response was swift and emphatic as they turned on the style normally associated with their opponents.

Virtually every player handled the ball as it was spun from side to side before second rower Stuart Littler finished off the bewildering movement with a try.

John Wilshere added the conversion and Salford almost scored again when full-back Karl Fitzpatrick, making his comeback from an eight-month injury lay-off, stretched out for the line only to be hauled back by full-back Matt Gidley.

It was then against the run of play that Saints regained their lead on 21 minutes, Gidley forcing his way over from acting half-back after Francis Meli had gone close straight from a scrum.

There was a touch of anxiety about Salford's play, not surprising given their perilous position, but there was no doubting their passion and determination.

And they received a helping hand five minutes before the break when Graham popped up an inviting pass for Wilshere to snaffle and he went 40 metres unopposed for an interception try.

His second goal levelled the scores for a second time and it stayed that way after Saints half-back James Roby dropped the ball over the line on the stroke of half-time.

Saints errors

A couple of uncharacteristic handling errors from the visitors enabled Salford to maintain the momentum they had built up in the first half and they hit the lead for the first time on 49 minutes thanks to a penalty goal from Wilshere.

The prompting of half-backs Luke Robinson and Wilshere caused all sorts of problems for the champions and the second-half introduction of Luke Dorn from the bench added further variety to the Reds' potent attack.

Shaun McRae's men dominated the third quarter and missed a glorious chance to extend their lead on 55 minutes when Dorn supported a break by Fitzpatrick and got to the line only to drop the ball.

The miss began to look costly when Graham, making amends for his wayward pass in the first half, charged onto Cunningham's superbly-timed pass for a try on 63 minutes.

And Salford had barely recovered from that shock when Cunningham took a return pass from Gardner to sprint 40 metres for another try and Tyrer's fourth goal made it 24-14.

Wilshere briefly breathed new life into Salford's cause when he forced his way over for his second try on 71 minutes but Tyrer steadied Saints' nerves with a penalty and Gardner made sure of the win when he raced 40 metres for his second try.