Kurt Haggerty happy to have ‘project’ Tyler Dupree on board at Salford

Salford Red Devils assistant head coach Kurt Haggerty has labelled new signing Tyler Dupree as a ‘project’.

Prop Dupree joined up with the Greater Manchester outfit earlier this week from Championship outfit Widnes Vikings. He has signed until the end of 2023.

With the 22-year-old having left the AJ Bell Stadium once already – midway through a scholarship – Haggerty is delighted to have him back.

Project D

“He’s a project but he’s somebody who could potentially be a very good player,” said the former Leigh Centurions boss.

“He’s a very exciting young man and he’s got some very good attributes which show that he’s Super League quality.

“I think he’s a real gem, a real find. We’ve beaten a lot of people to the punch in signing Tyler.

“We’ll dig a bit deeper and see him a little bit more within sessions then make a decision from there [as to when he’ll make his debut].”

Named as the young player of the year in the second division last year, it took only a handful of appearances for the Vikings this term for Dupree to earn Super League recognition.

Taking on St Helens, the prop was announced in the starting lineup for Salford’s reserves yesterday. He was though replaced prior to kick off and it is not known whether he played any part off the bench.

Only joining the club himself in November, Haggerty added: “We’re not just looking at the NRL and Super League [for new signings]. We’re looking at the Championship and League 1 too.

“That’s not specifically the type of player that we’re looking at all the time but with Tyler, there was an opportunity to bring him in early as somebody that we’d identified.

“We’re always looking to add to the pack.”

Salford’s first team welcome Leeds Rhinos at the AJ Bell in Super League action this afternoon (kick-off 3PM).