Saints are well in control at half time at Salford, leading the Red Devils 20-6.

Saints came into the game having made three changes to the side that won against Catalans last Friday.

Louie McCarthy-Scarsbrook and Luke Thompson returned from injury to join an all-forwards bench, while Mark Flanagan slotted in for Josh Jones at loose forward with Lance Hohaia and Greg Richards missing out.

With Joe Greenwood having a stormer, complementing Saints’ hardworking props - early unconverted tries from centres Mark Percival and Jordan Turner gave Saints a good start.

And then Greenwood was rewarded by running a good line close to the Reds try line for a touchdown goaled by Percival.

Salford got a foothold they probably didn’t deserve when Saints kicked through a speculative one on the last tackle power play – but it left Ben Jones-Bishop with an open run against two props.

Michael Dobson cut the deficit to 14-8, but Saints had the last word of the half when Thompson took Jon Wilkin’s pass to power in.

Salford: Locke; Jones-Bishop, Griffin, Caton-Brown, Johnson; Chase, Dobson; Taylor, Lee, Hock, Hansen, Walne, Paterson. Subs: Fages, Griffin, Tasi, Walne.

Saints: Lomax; Makinson, Percival, Turner, Swift; Burns, Wilkin; Amor, Roby, Maoe, Greenwood, Vea, Flanagan. Subs: Walmsley, Savelio, McCarthy-Scarsbrook, Thompson.