Fresh from demolishing the Rhinos on Friday night, the reigning Champions and Champions elect took on the Salford Red Devils in what was, on paper, another one-sided encounter on a Monday evening as St Helens and Salford re-enacted last years Grand Final.

Saints retained the services of Alex Walmsley despite him picking up a two match ban for a Grade C dangerous tackle in the Leeds game (his ban not coming into effect until midnight tonight) as  they named a youthful squad including five debutants; Nico Rizzelli, Ben Davies, Jake Wingfield, Tom Nisbet, and Matthew Foster.

Salford had unsettling news in the camp with their coach Ian Watson being widely linked with a potential move to Hull FC but on the field they welcomed back Dan Sarginson who had been self-isolating since before the Challenge Cup final.

It was fantastic to see the name of Salford Red Devils alongside Challenge Cup Final for the first time since 1969, a long, long wait for their faithful fans.

The last time they won the trophy was back in 1938 when the beat Barrow by 7-4, and this was only the seventh occasion that the side from Salford had made it to the showpiece.

By contrast their opponents, the Leeds Rhinos, are experienced old hands at these events.

This was their twenty-sixth Challenge Cup Final appearance, having lifted the trophy on thirteen occasions, the most recent being in 2015.

Leeds have been to the cup final on fifteen occasions since Salford were last there, having lifted the trophy five times.

But this was a one-off game, and despite the odds being stacked in the Rhinos favour, everyone tuning in to watch the game in an empty stadium, knew that Salford could beat any side on their day.

It was just a matter of whether this would be that day.

Londoner Dan Sarginson won the first of this year’s Challenge Cup quarter finals with a golden try in extra time for Salford after their game with Catalan Dragons was tied up at 18-18 on 80 minutes.

 

That put the Red Devils on course for a first Wembley Cup Final since 1938, the only time they won the cup – subject to tomorrow’s semi-final draw, which takes place during the half-time break of the fourth game.

 

It was the Dragons got their first points in early, capitalising on the worst possible start by Salford.

 

There was just six points between the Wigan Warriors and the Salford Red Devils when the two sides met at the same venue just a fortnight ago, in the opening round of the play-offs.

The prize tonight was a trip to Old Trafford next Saturday for the game's flagship event, and a chance at picking up the Super League trophy from the grasp of St Helens.

Adrian Lam juggled his side with Ben Flower and Sean O’Loughlin promoted from the bench to the starting line-up compared to a fortnight ago.

Ian Watson’s Salford made just one change from the last game, with Greg Burke being brought into the seventeen.

Everyone, including the bookies, expected Wigan to make their eleventh Grand Final, and their sixth in the last seven years.

Salford were seeking their first ever appearance at a stadium just five miles over the River Irwell from their base.

Momentum, however, was with the Red Devils.

For either the Salford Red Devils or the Castleford Tigers, tonight would be the end of the 2019 season.

The victors, however, would move on to next weekend and a chance to make the Old Trafford Grand final on the 12th October, in the second semi-final.

Both sides had close play-off games last weekend with contrasting fortunes.

Salford lost out narrowly to the Wigan Warriors, while the Tigers went the Halliwell-Jones and knocked out the Warrington Wolves on their own patch.

This was the third meeting between the two sides in 2019 with honours shared at one win apiece coming into tonights game.

The Red Devils brought in Greg Burke as a change to last week, and the Tigers had two changes with Nathan Massey and Greg Eden coming into the side.

Having never met at the Magic Weekend before the Salford Red Devils and Hull KR were both hoping to register the win and collect the important two points.

A win for the Red Devils would lift them into fifth spot and a play-off place, while a win for KR would leave Leeds and London fighting to avoid bottom spot in the 15:30 kick-off.

The Robins sprung a surprise a fortnight ago when they eliminated Salford from the Challenge Cup but the Red Devils were the victors, by just two points, when the sides met back in February.

The Leeds and London fans inside Anfield were cheering on the Salford side against a Hull side containing six past Rhinos players.

After yesterdays festival of rugby, it was a fitting start to Sundays feast.

When the Salford Red Devils hosted St Helens back in round four at the end of February, the Saints travelled back down the East Lancs Road with the two points after a convincing 26-4 win.

Saints are sitting very prettily at the top of the pile, with points in hand over their rivals, but Salford had a massive incentive in knowing that a win could lift them as high as third, thanks to their superior points difference.

Saints were without a number of key players including James Roby and Danny Richardson and despite Salford being underdogs, they must have travelled to the Totally Wicked Stadium with hope that they could upset the odds.

The Catalans Dragons had the perfect opportunity to build on the success of last weekends win over the Warrington Wolves as the Salford Red Devils paid a visit to the Stade Gilbert Brutus.

Salford, on the other hand, needed a confidence boost after a painful defeat at the hands of front-runners St Helens.

A home win would push the Dragons above Salford into fifth spot but the Red Devils knew that if they could secure the points then they’d be into the top four, stepping ahead of Hull FC in the league ladder.

Fifth played seventh as both sides looked to boost their league position.

The Super Eights Qualifiers were occupying centre stage in the final weekend of the competition with everything on the line for six sides, all of whom were seeking the guarantee of Super League football in 2019, but all of whom could slip into the Million Pound Game or in five cases, finish the season in sixth place.

With four games over four days the picture would gradually become clearer as the permutations reduced.

The opening game of the weekend was the Salford Red Devils hosting Toulouse Olympique XIII at the AJ Bell Stadium.

A win for the Red Devils would guarantee them safety, but a win for Toulouse could spell disaster for Salford and propel Toulouse into the crucial top three positions.

It promised to be a nervous night at the start of a nail biting weekend.

Salford all but secured their Super League place with victory over  Toronto Wolfpack – but the win came at a price with talismanic half-back Jackson Hastings likely to miss a number of games, not least next week’s visit to Leeds, after a late red card.

The opening 40 minutes belongs almost exclusively to the hosts.

Toronto offered no threat and on the few occasions when they did finish a set in their opponents’ 20, it inevitably petered out.

After losing to London last week, Widnes travelled to Salford needing a win to keep their hopes of playing Super League in 2019 alive.

And for a brief moment, it looked like they might secure the points.

With just two minutes gone, Charly Runciman went over in the corner after the Chemics kick to end their first set beat Ed Chamberlain – who spent most of this season in a Widnes shirt.

Former Catalans player Krisnan Inu converted and at 6-0 the visitors looked good to kick-on and make a competitive game of it.

Two sides, still with an outside chance of avoiding the middle eights, met at the AJ Bell Stadium in Salford as the Red Devils took on a Widnes Vikings side under the new control of Francis Cummins.

A convincing win for Salford would see them up to ninth and snapping at the heels of eighth placed Huddersfield Giants and a win for the Vikings would lift them off the bottom and over Hull KR into eleventh.

Salford gave debuts to on-loan Greg Burke and Ed Chamberlain against their parent club while the Vikings also played their loan signing from Salford, Weller Hauraki.

The bookies fancied a Salford win but the Vikings were determined to pick up their first away win of the season.

The opening Sunday encounter of the Magic Weekend threw together the Salford Red Devils and the Catalans Dragons.

The Red Devils were hoping to cement their top eight spot with a win, over a Catalans side which could lift themselves off the bottom and into ninth, until the sides above them play later in the afternoon.

Salford won the previous encounters including a 32-16 win in March.

The bookmakers were struggling to pick between the two sides but had made Salford the slight favourites as the crowds flooded back in to St James’ Park for the second day of this years jamboree.

One of the most intrigueing ties of the sixth round draw threw together near neighbours Leigh Centurions and the Salford Red Devils for a game at the Leigh Sports Village as one of the top sides in the Championship went head to head with a side still looking for Super League consistency.

Eight league places separated the two sides but Salford came into the game in the full knowledge that there was plenty of Super League experience in the Centurions side and that the home crowd would be baying for the blood of their rivals from ten miles down the A580.

The bookies fancied an away win but not by much and the cameras of SKY were there to witness the unfolding excitement with Leigh hoping to extend their nine match winning run.

Salford Red Devils were seeking a third consecutive victory as they placed to the league leaders St Helens in the Thursday night televised clas in round thirteen of Super League.

The pundits and the bookies all pointed to a Saints win and a tough night at the office for the Devils at the AJ Bell Stadium.

After a stunning win over Wakefield Trinity last time out the home side had Jake Shorrocks in for the injured Rob Lui, Lee Mossop replacing Ben Nakumuwai in the front row and Lama Tasi on the bench.

Saints put sixty-six points on the Giants last weekend and welcomed back Mark Percival and Zeb Taia.

The neutrals were hoping for a close game.

Today, not just the badge on the shirt changes but the whole ethos of what this famous old club is about.



Steeped in tradition and revered in history, the Red Devils has become one of the most talked about teams in the game and going forward from today the Club will embrace the ethic and attitude of this magnificent city of Salford.

There were two charges and a caution to come out of the weekends Ladbroke’s Challenge Cup semi-finals, and both were from the hard fought game between the Wigan Warriors and Salford Red Devils.



Wigan’s Sam Powell was charged, and Frank-Paul Nuuausala received a caution, while Salford’s Lama Tasi also found himself with a charge from the Red Hall disciplinary committee.

Salford Red Devils are hoping to unleash Manu Vatuvei on Wigan Warriors in their Ladbrokes Challenge Cup semi-final.



Vatuvei currently plays for the New Zealand Warriors of the National Rugby League.

A New Zealand national representative winger, he has played his entire NRL career to date with the Warriors.

Vatuvei was a member of the New Zealand side that won the 2008 Rugby League World Cup.

He became the Warriors' highest try scorer and averages over 10 tries per season.

The quarter finals of the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup got underway at the A.

J.

Bell Stadium where Salford Red Devils hosted Wakefield Trinity in a top of the table clash which had the bookies and pundits guessing.



The Red Devils had the home advantage but there are only two Super League points separating them in second place and fifth placed Wakefield Trinity, both sides having excellent seasons.



Despite the Red Devils being the slight favourites, Trinity won 24-22 at home in March and picked up a 34-24 win at the A.

J.

Bell a fortnight ago giving Salford with two reasons for Challenge Cup revenge.

When the draw was made for the fifth round of the 2017 Ladbrokes Challenge Cup there was one outstanding fixture.

The all conquering Toronto Wolfpack from Championship One were draw away at high-flying Super League Salford Red Devils.



It would be a chance for the games newest side to test their mettle against one of its most established and all eyes were on the AJ Bell Stadium to see what would happen.



The Red Devils were without Junior Sa'u, Logan Tomkins and Todd Carney while Toronto gave a debut to surprise mid-week acquisition Ryan Brierley.