Fans of Salford Red Devils should have been turning up to watch their team play on Sunday August 17, but instead hundreds of furious supporters turned up to protest the very club they love. Just last year Salford were tipped to be a strong contender for European champions of rugby league, but a series of crises has now left the club foundering at the bottom of the table, its very future in the Super League in doubt. The dramatic shift in the club's fortunes has seen fans becoming increasingly frustrated with the club's new owners, a consortium who took over in February. Sunday had been going to see Salford's Red Devils face off against Wakefield Trinity in a home game. Never miss a story with the MEN's daily Catch Up newsletter - get it in your inbox by signing up here Frustration is now so acute that instead of watching their team play fans who formed The 1873 group, named after the club's founding year, planned a mass walkout at the game's 30 minute mark. The walkout plan was scuppered when the club announced that Sunday's match had been cancelled, but hundreds of fans still arrived to march to the stadium and stage a protest outside. Alan Hargreaves was an organiser for the protest, and admitted he had been nervous that people wouldn't show up after the cancellation, but was pleasantly surprised. "Considering the game was called off and everyone's come out and turned up, it just shows the level of support," he told the Manchester Evening News. "We didn't expect hardly anyone after the game got cancelled, but we were determined this protest would go ahead today." It might seem counterintuitive for fans to protest the very club they love, but fans have made it clear they are doing so because they have the club's future at heart. Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE Explaining why he had protested, Alan, 40, said: "It's to stop our club from imploding, to try and keep our club alive and showing the sporting world that Salford means a lot to the people. "Quite a few people have been organising. "We just said to ourselves enough is enough. A small group of us had a pint, and this is the result. "We've made more noise in one week than the owners have since February." Fellow organiser Richard Fletcher, 43, vowed that they had no plans to stop until the club begins to listen. "We've to play it week by week," he said. "Hopefully the owners will come out with a big cheque. Until they do that 1873 are going to keep going and making noise." Fans Graham Munt, 58, and Victoria Munt, 45, came all the way from Crewe to attend the march. Safety consultant Graham said: "The team's been decimated. We just don't know what's going on. "People just want answers. They want to know and understand what's happening, especially when they can see everything. "It's making Rugby League look stupid. That's the opinion of about 5,000 Salford fans." Explaining why he was protesting at the club, he said: "I want Salford Rugby League Club to survive. I want it to be in the Super League. "We don't know what they're doing, no communication. There's one letter in the last few weeks since February. "They've said nothing at all." Victoria added: "It's only since these owners have come in that Salford have hit rock bottom." The club's owners had previously sought to reassure fans that they intended to stay in the Super League. “We understand the frustration many fans feel. But we want to be clear: Salford Red Devils will not close,” they said. “We have consistently met wage obligations under difficult conditions and continue to tackle over £3m in inherited debt. “Your patience and support are deeply appreciated as we work to return SRD to its rightful position in the sport.” They added: “Chronic underfunding – exacerbated by average attendance figures of approximately 4,000 – has left the club in a state of prolonged financial stress. “This is not a reflection on any former ownership, but rather a systemic issue we are determined to resolve. Our focus remains firmly on long-term solvency and stability.”