The present work is aimed at evaluating the contribution to the secondary flow in duct flow with square and rectangular cross section from three-dimensional coherent structures, defined as intense Reynolds-stress events. The contribution to a certain mean quantity is defined as the ensemble average over the detected coherent structures, weighted with their own occupied volume fraction. Our analysis unveils that the contribution to the cross-stream components of the mean velocity is either very similar to the same contribution in channel flow, or almost negligible in respect to the contribution from the portion of the domain not occupied by coherent structures. These results suggest that the most intense events are not directly responsible for the secondary flow.