SALFORD coach Shaun McRae believes facing St Helens tonight is as tough as coming up against Roger Federer or Andy Murray at Wimbledon.
McRae accepts trying to beat the engage Super League leaders is a tough challenge but one he hopes can bring the best out of his players.
Saints are four points clear at the top of the table and 20 points better off than the City Reds but McRae is upbeat ahead of the visit of Mick Potter’s in-form side.
McRae, a former St Helens coach, said: “With St Helens you have got the opportunity to pit your wits against the best.
“I run out of superlatives to describe the St Helens side. People may say that is emotion because I was there but it is not.
“I just enjoy watching good sides play and seeing sides continually raise the standards.
“They are a club that do that and they can rip you to shreds at any time.
“But when you play against these sides they tend to bring the best out of you and I am hoping that is the case.
“I reckon you’d want to play against Andy Murray or Roger Federer because you’d want to test them and be known as the player that beat them.
“It’s a bit similar to that. We’re playing against the best, let’s see how we stand up against them.”
Salford have lost their last three games and, six points off eighth place, are running out of time to push of a play-off position.
Saints by contrast are well on course for a fifth successive league leaders’ shield having lost just three times all season.
Coach Potter sees the game as another step towards his end-of-season goal but will not take anything for granted at The Willows.
Potter said: “It is a chance to consolidate, another two points.
“But Salford have had a season of mixed performances and we just hope that we are at our best and get over the top of them.
“They play with real good shape and we will need to hang on early on before we can play any footy.”
Tonight’s other match sees Wigan take on Harlequins at the JJB Stadium after a morale-boosting victory at Hull KR last weekend.
That win lifted spirits after a turbulent fortnight in which the Warriors lost to bottom side Celtic Crusaders, second row Gareth Hock tested positive for drugs and coach Brian Noble’s position came under more scrutiny.
Noble now wants his side to build some momentum but has been impressed by Harlequins this season.
“They are fifth in the league ladder for a reason,” said Noble. “Chad Randall is key for them and Danny Orr is playing pretty well, so their pivots are going good.”
FIXTURES: TONIGHT: engage Super League Salford v St Helens 8.00, Wigan v Harlequins RL 8.00
SATURDAY: engage Super League Catalans Dragons n Hull KR 8.00, Celtic Crusaders v Warrington 6.00, Hull v Leeds 5.00. The Co-operative Championship: Widnes v Doncaster 6.00.
SUNDAY: engage Super League: Bradford V Castleford 3.00, Huddersfield V Wakefield 3.00.
