Couldn't tell if it was Bentley or Wilkinson haha! Yes was very impressed with Bentley as I was in the game or two he had last season. Aye Lumb has been good and will be our main hooker from now on I would have thought

Be nice to see him play a full season! To be honest that 3/4 line is class. For me Oakes and Ryan need to be a long term partnership. Both 20? So give them a few years together. I do hope Mendeika gets a run too but I can see Foster going there if we manage to beef up the pack!

Agree with the young and lacking experience. For me, I'd play Peltier and Joseph with Kirk and Magrin on the bench with a loan prop. Need a couple of second rowers though to complement Roche. I'd give Bentley a run at 13 though!

I thought we started well, but as we fed in more academy lads throughout the game, the impact & intensity dropped off. I dislike picking out individuals in a team game, but Oscar Thomas gifted Cougars 2 tries and generally had a shocker.

Aye Thomas was garbage. Saying that I though Halafihi was poor. Threw a terrible ball in a 4 v 2/3 situation that went to no one in the first half when Mendieka and Macani were wide open. Then cost an opportunity when on the 5th he went left where there were 3 Cougars marking 2 Bulls instead of whipping it straight to Pryce/Keyes for the kick.

I saw enough again today to still feel positive that we will eventually be a good team. It is still very early days and only the second time this thrown together team has played together, first time Pryce and Keyes partnered each other etc.

I thought we were good in the first half. Along with the trys we scored we had two good breaks ruled out for forward passes and there were two occasions on our right edge where we should have scored but picked the wrong pass. Attacking cohesion will only come with more game time. We looked a lot more creative than last week.

In the second half we removed Campbell, Keyes, Roche (who looks an excellent signing) and it showed. Thomas made two bad decisions that led directly to two trys; he needs more game time I think to sharpen up but I see him firmly as a backup player this year.

Our young lads all look excellent. The best of them today were Oakes (again), Bentley and Hodgson.

They wont however be able to do it every week for a full season and as everyone has recognised, we need a few experienced heads in the pack to take some of the pressure off them.


If Foster re-signs that's the backs sorted for me.

If Joseph signs then I would also be looking for 1 more experienced prop and two experienced second rowers and I think we'd be looking ok.

I wonder if Huddersfield would be willing to loan Mellor back to us. No idea where he is on their pecking order because I don't know enough about their squad, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to ask.
He'd be great cover for second row and centre.

As I say I would give Lumb the 9 shirt and Bentley the 13 shirt. That gives us four 20 year olds in the starting line up in Ryan, Oakes, Lumb and Bentley. Wilkinson will go well this season too!



Could have asked him. He was at the game today!

Presumably a Toronto fan...

Really makes me laugh. Bradford wanted to cancel today's game and play Toronto as you didn't think we were capable of giving you a game with the intensity you needed.
Craig Lingard must have had a very easy dressing room talk with the Keighley players.
I'm glad to see a team in Bradford playing rugby league but with the 12 point deducted I think championship 1 is beckoning.
Whichever league you plying your trade in next year I hope we're in it together because the crowd today was fantastic.

You thought anyone on this page would be interested why?
You haven't just won the challenge cup..
Gloating usually comes round and bites hard

Won

I don't think you'll find many of us that would disagree with that.

Really?
The whole of Bradford wanted to cancel todays game - no wonder you were laughing - everyone in Bradford wanted to cancel todays game but it went ahead anyway.
That's hysterical; stop it, stop it, my sides are splitting.

Yes I'm sure you want us to be in the same league as you - we bring quite a few fans, which is money into your teams pocket - cant blame you for wanting that.

You do know that today you only just beat a ramshackle team who have had less than two weeks training together - thats not really that high a bar to beat is it?

I'm happy to keep Mr Hicks on this forum, keep talking to him and then he will stay here.

Enjoyed today, 'what's it like to see a crowd'. Well yes pretty good actually I'll be honest. Hopefully we get some more game time together over the next few years. Championship looks pretty big ask next year, but the fight is on and if you manage it fair play.

Balls to super league, who needs it.

Pleased for kitty was speaking to him last night. He is a better player than halafihi his distribution from acting half is better than most even super league hookers when I say that. Left or right always to hands. Glad he played well even at the expense of us

He upped the tempo of the game (which you and I have known he does for years!) and as you say distribution was spot on. Well taken try as well, showed his support play which has always been top notch! Agree with you, pleased to see him play well even at the expense of us haha!

Halafihi was so poor today. And I do worry that he's our back up to Joe Lumb! I wanted him to go well today too and prove he can be a solid back up. One of them needs to develop a running game though otherwise both will be predictable. That's what we lack without O'Brien, the runs from dummy half which put us on the front foot a lot.

When was that?

I'm not gloating about anything.
I just thought it was disrespectful to try and cancel the game because you wanted tougher opposition.
Thanks to all the fans that traveled which will have put money in both clubs pockets as it was a shared gate.
I hope we make the championship and you stay there but I said I thought it was a tough ask.
The reason I would like to see both. Lubs in the championship is bigger gates and better standard of rugby.
Good luck to both teams for the coming season.

That's a bit more like it...was you on the beer when you wrote yesterdays post??

Not at all I still think it's a tough ask to stay up.
I will watch your results with interest.

Too bloody right it's a tough ask. Have Keighley a decent chance of going up this year? We may pass you on the way down.

Forced to laugh at T&A, "Bulls must cut out errors", there goes that song again!

Championship 1 is also looking really competitive. I would reserve Toronto for first place and a few teams in the fight for the other spot.

We play toronto at home early on so we will see, if we keep momentum I see no reason we can't give them a close game. I suspect next year we have a greater chance of going up, unless bradford come down then we are probably scrapping for second spot again!

If Toronto prove Succesful and we manage to stay FT and in Championship, then it would mean another FT side in the Championship. In terms of quality levels does that mean the RFL are getting it right?

Would love to see a all FT Championship.

Bulls
KR
Toronto
Tolouse
London

Shame Sheffield couldn't make it count, and manage to stay FT.

Does anybody like the idea of reducing SL to 10 FT sides and having a Championship of 10 FT sides?

Competition levels I feel would be better.

It doesn't work. Not enough games. Ideally it needs two divisions of 16 but there isn't enough quality of players or backers with loadsa money.

Anybody know what the gate receipts were for the Keighley match (and how much of them Bulls got (after the VAT was put to one side

))?