I think McCrae and the team have done a fairly good job this season. If as a Salford fan I was asked at the start of the season would I take beating Saints, Leeds (away! ), pi$$ing off wire and knocking the numbties in Hull out of the cup in the last minute I would've ripped your hands off.

The difference in NL and SL is giant and you can't expect us to come up and start pushing for a top 8 place first time of asking. True we may not at times have played expansive, exciting rugby and sure the loss to Wigan in the cup was wrenching for every one there but people need a reality check.

If it wasn't for a bit of bad luck we could have been a couple of places further up the league. Also it's hardly McCrae's fault that we've been without Talau and White for most of the season and of late Rob Parker. You're not telling me these players wouldn't have made a difference in the matches where we've lost by the odd try?

Myler's been brought on and looks like he's made the club a tidy packet, Ratchford's flourishing now and McGilvery is improving. Swain and especially Henry have been good additions. Cashmere's a bit big and daft but he makes the yards and has shown our younger forwards how important looking for the offload can be (Nash @ Harlequins).

If anyone thinks booing McCrae is a good idea then fine, you pay your money for the privilage of being there, but I think it's a bit naive. I for one (unlike other backward minded people) will be renewing my season ticket next year with or without a freebie shirt.

Roll on next season's what I say!!

Fully agree with Salfords Finest

I find it difficult to make my mind up entirely about the Coaching situation at the Club. Shaun McRae certainly has the experience and has a good track record when working with talented players and he does need time to create his own team at Salford.

If he is guilty of anything at the Willows I think it is underestimating the abilities of his team. Everything seems to be about power up front and wearing the opposition down. This was essentially true in National League One last year too. Even then we rarely played with the sort of flair that I feel we could have displayed at that level. I think our best game last year was probably Celtic away in the Northern Rail Cup Semi where we played with flair and imagination - but we didn't do it enough for me.

This season has seen a very conservative approach. Now perhaps it's because after the Celtic win in the first game we lost the next six matches by some big margins before getting back on track against Hull in the Cup and Shaun McRae decided the only way to get up to Super League speed was to play no frills rugby and cut out the mistakes - an approach that has seen us win 7 out of the next 20 games and defend much better (except for Catalans and Warrington away) - so perhaps he was right.

However, I think that we have more flair in our ranks than he allows. Ratchford is developing very well; Mark Henry looks like a classy centre; some of our forwards can play a bit and we have looked good when we have been chasing matches and have thrown the ball about. There was one very adventurous move against Hull KR last week. I think he's right though in the fact that we lack a cutting edge and find it difficult to turn pressure into points.

I think it will be very interesting to see who we bring in during the close season. It seems that we are looking at some young British players and I hope that's the way forward. I hope that we play a more expansive game though. I had real doubts about Jeremy Smith earlier on, and though he still has to do more for me, I have noticed encouraging signs from him since he and Ratchford have been the starting half backs.

I really hope Shaun McRae can bring in the right players and take us to the next level with more expansive and adventurous game plans.

i was Mcrae bagger but for me he has turned the corner, he was under pressure recently where other salford coaches would have folded and been sacked he has grown and turned the side somthing resembling a superleague side who are begining to deal with the pressures of playing at this level.

Hopefully in the offseason he'll have the guts (like he as shown with Myler and Turner) to get rid of a few who cant cut it at this level and continue his fine form with Mr Simms in the transfer market and replace them with a better standard of player who can deal physially and mentally with the rigures of superleague Rugby league.

He's building a team who will win somthing. it wouldnt be pretty but we'll win or at least acheive the same as the playoff team under harrison perhaps more.

How many incorrect spellings of McRae can you manage in one RLFANS thread?

The main problem with McRae is that he doesn't particularly want to be Head Coach of Salford City Reds. It's a job for him, not a mission like Nathan Brown at Huddersfield, Justin Morgan at Hull KR etc. That's the ultimate root of all the complaints about the coaching situation.

Mcrae is a winner and he is beginning to create a squad with "that" inside them

he wasn't at the Bunnies!

He has been lucky.

I can't see what McRae's achieved this season to attract some of the latest positive comments.

I've just read his comments on the BBC sport website about how unlucky Salford have been, i.e. the number of matches we've lost by a narrow margin and that if these had been victories we'd have been contending a Top 8 play off place...........Come On! every other side in the table could claim that.

The fact is, we're next to bottom and deservedly so, the table at the end of the season doesn't lie.

I'd love to believe we'll improve next season, but from the evidence I see every week, our past record of poor signings and continued uncertainty surrounding our future I just can't see it.

Of course, I will continue to turn up and support the team again next season, but I'm afraid it's more in hope than expectation.

Mcrea. McRea. Mcrae. Mc Rae. Mc rea. MC Hammer.
No, no, no, no, no and no.

McRae.
Yes.

As for his history as a coach. Succeeded at Saints with a ready made quality team which still required some coaching.
Had success with Gateshull. Picked the best of 2 average teams and ended up with a pretty decent record.
Souths. Pre Russell Crowe era. Struggled throughout his time there which I believe lasted 18 months as head coach before being moved into a Director of Football roll for a short time. Vanished into the wilderness a little while before taking over here.

Point is. He's yet to be proven as a coach that can develop a squad from scratch and succeed. I'm sure he'll have learnt lots about this in the last 9 months or so. Maybe next year is the real big test of his tenure?

Saints hadn't won the league title since 1975 and the Challenge Cup since 1976 when McRae took over. He won them both in hus first season.