Cudjoe ends final home game with goal in Giants win

Leroy Cudjoe's kicked a conversion with the last touch of his final home game for Huddersfield Giants

Betfred Super League

Huddersfield (4) 22

Tries: Golding, Swift, Gagai, Rush Goals: Flanagan 2, Cudjoe

Salford (8) 8

Try: Sangare Goals: Milnes 2

Leroy Cudjoe kicked a conversion with the last act of his final home match for Huddersfield Giants to set the seal on a win over Super League's bottom club Salford Red Devils.

The 37-year-old, who has been with the club for 18 years and played over 400 games, will retire at the end of the season.

For 70 minutes it looked like a miserable final appearance in front of adoring home fans for Cudjoe as Justin Sangare's early try, two Rowan Milnes goals and some sterling defence from the troubled Red Devils had them 8-4 ahead and on course for only their fourth win of the season.

But the visitors ran out of steam in the final 10 minutes as Adam Swift, Jacob Gagai and Kieran Rush ended their resistance and added to Ashton Golding's first-half score, leaving the stage for Cudjoe to end the match in fitting fashion.

Giants coach Luke Robinson had urged his players to make sure Cudjoe's remarkable one-club career had a happy home finish.

But he was left kicking seats with frustration as his misfiring team struggled to break down Paul Rowley's collection of loan signings, misfits and youth players.

The Red Devils are sure to finish bottom after a traumatic season which has seen them twice have HMRC winding-up petitions adjourned, allowing them to complete the campaign.

They have also suffered a player exodus and sustainability cap issues, and last week lost assistant coach Kurt Haggerty, who was earmarked to replace Rowley next season, due to their perilous financial position.

They have rallied under Rowley, however, and forward Sangare marked his 150th career appearance by barging his way over the line after just seven minutes.

And with Milnes converting and then kicking a penalty it looked like the away side would go into the break with an eight-point cushion.

Huddersfield, struggling for rhythm and ideas, and without a try in their two previous matches, finally pieced something together as Swift caught a high ball and off-loaded to Joe Greenwood, who sent Golding over for his first try of the season.

Huddersfield hammered away in the second half with little success until Swift, after a spell on the bench, returned with the energy to step inside and pirouette over the line.

Salford cracked, and Gagai caught Oliver Russell's chip to score before Tiaki Chan and George Flanagan were sin-binned for a scuffle.

Rush's try in the final minute set the scene perfectly for Cudjoe, who duly slotted the ball between the posts.

'He's Mr Huddersfield' - Robinson reaction

Huddersfield coach Luke Robinson told BBC Radio Leeds:

"It was an ugly game, not the best to watch for a neutral. I told Rowls [Paul Rowley] afterwards that he's great at creating that siege mentality, and no matter which players he puts out they compete so hard.

"I don't think I would have been able to live with myself if I had been the coach that lost [Leroy Cudjoe's] last-ever game. What he has done for not only the club, but rugby in Huddersfield, he is Mr Huddersfield.

"My debut for Huddersfield was also Leroy's debut in 2008 against Leeds in a packed-out stadium so I've gone through a journey with him, and seeing the player he has become from a skinny full-back, to wing, to centre, to back row, to loose, and I even started him at prop today…

"He is a champion bloke on and off the field and gives everything for Huddersfield."

Salford coach Paul Rowley said:

"We play like a team and that's really remarkable for us, having nine loan players in or whatever. In terms of character, we've never failed. It's a 10 out of 10 there.

"We defended for a full second-half really and ultimately it got us in the end.

On the future for his squad: "They know that I know exactly the same as them.

"That question might as well be me asking them. I'm as in-the-know as them.

"Obviously the delayed tax HMRC thing probably adds, if anything, to more anxiety because we go into the off-season still with a cloud over us."

Huddersfield: Flanagan; Swift, Gagai, Bibby, Halsall; Rush, Russell; Cudjoe, Woolford, Burgess, Greenwood, Billington, Rushton.

Interchanges: Golding, King, Rogers, Powell.

Sin-bin: Flanagan (75)

Salford: Walker; Tchamambe, Gorman, Darbyshire, Connell; Marsters, Milnes; Sangare, Mellor, Chan, Russell, Ruan, Wilson.

Interchanges: Warren, Shaw, Davis, Macdonald.

Sin-bin: Chan (75)

Referee: Scott Mikalauskas.