2018 Bradford Bulls season

By the start of August it was confirmed that the Bulls would be relegated into League 1 after finishing bottom of the 2017 RFL Championship table.[1] Preparation for the 2018 season began in August when it was announced that academy graduate and first team player Keenan Tomlinson agreed to leave the Bulls by mutual consent. This was swiftly followed by the news that home grown second-rower and the 2017 Player of the Year James Bentley, had signed a 3-year deal with Super League side St. Helens.[2]

Home grown centre Ross Oakes and prop forward Liam Kirk both re-signed with Bradford among speculation that the duo would leave due to the Bulls relegation, however both signed new 2-year deals.[3] It was announced that centre James Mendieka had been released by the club after three seasons.[4] Young academy graduate hooker Joe Lumb signed a 1-year deal with local League 1 side Keighley Cougars after not featuring much during 2017.[5] Further departures were announced as winger Johnny Campbell resigned with his old club Batley Bulldogs.[6] While fellow winger Omari Caro announced on social media that he had retired from the sport.[7] Second row forward Colton Roche joined the mini exodus as he signed for Huddersfield Giants of the Super League.[8] Some good news followed the exodus as it was revealed that highly rated academy prospects Riess Butterworth, Evan Hodgson and Oliver Wilson all signed new 3-year contracts with the Bulls.[9] Hodgson and Butterworth have both featured in the first team during the 2017 season, however Wilson is yet to make his debut. In a shock move, Bradford managed to acquire the services of current superstar halfback Dane Chisholm for another 2 season despite interest from several other clubs.[10] Meanwhile, prop forward Ross Peltier put pen to paper on a new 2-year deal and young halfback Joe Keyes also signed up for another 2 years.[11][12] Hooker Vila Halafihi became the 9th player to re-sign with the Bulls after agreeing a new 2-year deal to stay at Odsal.[13] Following this, hooker Scott Moore was released after declining to sign a new contract.[14] Lifelong Bulls fan and loose forward Elliot Minchella became the first new signing of the 2018 season as he signed a 2-year part-time deal from RFL Championship side Sheffield Eagles.[15] The month ended on a high for the Bulls as they announced the capture of experienced second rower Matt Garside from Championship team London Broncos on a 2-year deal.[16]

October started with the re-signing of two young academy products, winger Josh Rickett and fullback Brandon Pickersgill both signed 2 year part-time deals after making a handful of appearances last season.[17] After initially signing for Leigh Centurions, young winger Ethan Ryan re-signed with Bradford on a 2-year deal following Leigh's relegation to the Championship.[18] Prop forward James Davies signed a 1-year extension to his contract to stay at Bradford, whilst it was announced that young prop Mikey Wood signed on a 1-year loan deal from Super League side Huddersfield Giants.[19][20] Young prop George Milton signed a 2-year deal with Bradford from newly promoted side Hull Kingston Rovers.[21] It was announced that former prop and academy graduate Steve Crossley would return to the club for a third spell from Canadian side Toronto Wolfpack on a 2-year deal.[22]

Off-contract winger Iliess Macani departed the Bulls and signed for RFL Championship side Sheffield Eagles on a 1-year deal.[23] It was announced that the Bulls would play local rivals Halifax in a festive Boxing Day friendly, the first the Bulls have participated in since 2012.[24] Following this it was also confirmed that the Bulls would play Sheffield Eagles in a friendly as a part of the Dane Chisholm transfer midway through last season.[25] Young second-row forward Liam Johnson followed the footsteps of Mikey Wood and joined the Bulls from Super League side Huddersfield Giants on a season long loan.[26] The fixtures for the 2018 season were announced and the Bulls would kick off the campaign away to York City Knights on 18 February, before hosting the London Skolars at home on 4 March. The highly anticipated derby with local rivals Keighley Cougars were scheduled on 11 March (away) and 2 September (home).[27] It was also revealed that head coach Geoff Toovey would not be returning to the Bulls and in the meantime Leigh Beattie will take up the interim head coach role until a new coach is appointed.[28] Championship side Dewsbury Rams released details to two friendlies, with one being against the Bulls on 21 January at Crown Flatt, meanwhile Bradford announced that they would face Keighley Cougars in a friendly match on 11 February for the Joe Philips Memorial trophy.[29][30] Sheffield Eagles announced that they would face Bradford in a friendly in 2018 as part of the deal which brought superstar halfback Dane Chisholm to the Bulls in 2017, the tie will be played on 11 January.[31] The newest team in rugby league, Toronto Wolfpack also announced a ground breaking Transatlantic Challenge which would see them face the Bulls in a pre-season match in 2018 and 2019, with the 2018 fixture being played at Odsal on 26 January and the 2019 fixture likely to be played in Canada or the United States to promote the sport.[32] Prop forward Jon Magrin who featured for the Bulls 25 times in 2017 decided to sign with Championship side Sheffield Eagles on a 2-year deal joining fellow former teammate Iliess Macani.[33]

December started off with the news that the Bulls had signed young utility forward Jamel Goodall on a one-year contract from Castleford Tigers after impressing beforehand with Keighley Cougars.[34] It was also announced that following the departure of Geoff Toovey, former Sheffield Eagles, Hull F.C. and England coach John Kear had signed a 3-year deal to become head coach. His first move was to appoint long term clubman and interim coach Leigh Beattie as his assistant coach whilst making experienced back Lee Smith the club captain.[35] Bradford also secured the services of young centre/second row Callum Bustin on a season long loan deal from Castleford Tigers, he has had previous loan spells at fellow League 1 clubs Newcastle Thunder and London Skolars.[36] The Bulls released their new 2018 home shirt which pays tribute to the 40th anniversary of Bradford Northern's Premiership victory in 1978, featuring a red, amber and black chevron on a white background. During this reveal the 2018 squad numbers were also released with club captain Lee Smith retaining the number 1 shirt, other major movers include centre Ashley Gibson at number 3, Sam Hallas at number 9, Steve Crossley at number 10 whilst newcomers Matt Garside, Elliot Minchella and George Milton will wear the number 11, 12 and 13 shirts.[37] With the appointment of the shirt numbers it means that Australian prop Damien Sironen has not signed a new deal, veteran centre Willie Tonga and fullback Oscar Thomas were released. Another new signing was unveiled in the form of experienced Championship winger Dalton Grant on a 1-year deal from London Broncos, Grant missed the 2017 season due to injury but is looking to earn a starting spot for the Bulls.[38] 30 year old former Super League winger Alex Brown signed a 1-year deal with the Bulls from local side Batley Bulldogs becoming the 10th new recruit for the season.[39] The Boxing Day friendly ended with a 22-6 victory for the Bulls with newcomer Elliot Minchella scoring two tries and fellow newcomer Dalton Grant also crossing for a try whilst youngster Liam Kirk also scored. Club captain Lee Smith kicked two goals and academy player Rowan Milnes also kicked a goal.

Top points scorer from last season Oscar Thomas followed former Bulls Iliess Macani and Jon Magrin by signing with RFL Championship side Sheffield Eagles on a one-year deal.[40] The next friendly for the Bulls saw them overcome RFL Championship side Sheffield Eagles 12-6 in a very defensive match which saw Steve Crossley and Dalton Grant claim tried for Bradford whilst youngster Rowan Milnes kicked two goals. The following game saw the Bulls field a young side away at Dewsbury Rams for former player Paul Sykess' testimonial. The Bulls lost the match 24-0. During a press conference it was revealed that the Bulls had entered a dual registration with Championship side Toronto Wolfpack.[41] Also in this press conference the Bulls announced the signing of fullback Gregg McNally on a two-year deal from Leigh Centurions and also revealed the new red 2018 away kit.[42] The Bulls faced their new dual registration partners in a friendly, however the Toronto side outclassed the Bradford side who lost the match 34-0.

Recently signed prop forward Jamel Goodall put pen to paper on a contract extension, after impressing coach John Kear in the pre-season games, keeping Goodall at the Bulls until after the 2019 season.[43] The Bulls finished their pre-season friendlies with a hard-fought 28-20 win over local rivals Keighley Cougars. Loan signing Liam Johnson scored a brace whilst Alex Brown, Elliot Minchella and Brandon Pickersgill also scored with Joe Keyes kicking 4 goals. The league season started with a narrow 22-20 victory over promotion rivals York City Knights, prop forward Steve Crossley, centre Ashley Gibson and Minchella all crossed for a try and Keyes held his nerve in the final minute to kick a penalty goal to provide the win for the Bulls and bring his personal tally to 5 goals for the game. The Bulls announced the signing of Bradford born hooker George Flanagan from Hunslet R.L.F.C. on a two-year deal.[44] Bradford progressed in the 2018 Challenge Cup with a comprehensive 82-6 win over West Wales Raiders, second rower Minchella scored five tries in the rout with Gibson, Johnson and Gregg McNally scoring two tries each. Callum Bustin, Dane Chisholm, Crossley and Ethan Ryan also crossed the try line and Joe Keyes rounded off the scoring with 11 goals.

March started with the news that trialist Harvey Burnett had been signed on a permanent deal following an impressive pre-season.[45] The scheduled league match against London Skolars was postponed due to bad weather. In their next league match the Bulls came out 54-6 winners over local rivals Keighley Cougars. New signing George Flanagan and Elliot Minchella both scored a brace of tries whilst Dalton Grant, Sam Hallas, Joe Keyes, Ross Peltier and Ethan Ryan also scored tries, Keyes kicked 9 conversions. Trialist Dan King was allocated the number 16 shirt whilst winger Alex Brown retired from the sport to pursue a full-time job. Trialist Jordan Andrade was also signed on a permanent deal whilst Toronto Wolfpack centre Jake Butler-Fleming joined the Bulls on a one-month loan deal.[46] Prop forward James Davies joined local rivals Keighley Cougars on a one-month loan deal.[47] Following the win against Keighley the Bulls secured a 32-12 victory over Hunslet R.L.F.C. with Dalton Grant scoring a hat-trick, Sam Hallas scoring two tries and halfback Dane Chisholm rounding off the scoring with Keyes making 4 conversions. The Bulls rounded off March with a 30-12 win over fellow promotion contenders Oldham R.L.F.C., Grant continued his scoring run with a brace of tries whilst Chisholm and Minchella also crossed the line with conversions from Keyes, Lee Smith and Chisholm.

The month started with a 34-10 win away at Hunslet R.L.F.C. in the re-arranged 2018 Challenge Cup tie. Matt Garside scored for the first time in a Bulls shirt whilst Liam Johnson, Josh Rickett and Ethan Ryan also scored with Elliot Minchella scoring his 10th try of the season to ensure the Bulls progressed to the 5th Round and a tie against Super League side Warrington Wolves.[48] However a trip to Cumbria to face former player Leon Pryce's side Workington Town brought the Bulls back to earth as their unbeaten start to the season ended with a 16-17 loss, Jake Butler-Fleming and Ross Peltier provided the tries for Bradford. Following the defeat it was announced that Jake Butler-Fleming would move back to Toronto Wolfpack in order to facilitate a move to York City Knights, meanwhile the Bulls announced that Jy Hitchcox from Castleford Tigers had joined on a month's loan alongside second rower James Laithwaite who is also on a month's loan from Toronto.[49] The Bulls got back to winning ways with a 52-6 victory over Coventry Bears, new loanee Jy Hitchcox made his mark with two tries whilst Liam Johnson and George Flanagan also scored two each. Ashley Gibson, Joe Keyes, Elliot Minchella and Ethan Ryan rounded off the scoring. Bradford's Challenge Cup hopes were ended by Warrington in a 54-6 defeat with a try and goal coming from Joe Keyes. The month ended with a top of the table clash against Doncaster R.L.F.C. at the Keepmoat Stadium, the Bulls came away with a 32-6 victory as Elliot Minchella grabbed a brace with Flanagan, Ryan and Mikey Wood also scoring.

The Bulls posted a club record score of 124-0 against West Wales Raiders to go back to the top of the table.[50] Elliot Minchella and Matt Garside both scored hat-tricks whilst Dane Chisholm, Dalton Grant, Brandon Pickersgill and Ethan Ryan scored two tries each. Further tries from Callum Bustin, George Flanagan, Vila Halafihi, Sam Hallas, James Laithwaite, Ross Peltier and Lee Smith ensured the Bulls came away with a heavy win. During the match Chisholm broke the club record for points scored in a match by coming away with 48 points and also broke the goal kicking record by nailing 20 out of 21 conversions. Another big win came in the rearranged league fixture against London Skolars. Bradford won the match 54-16, Ethan Ryan scoring four tries and fellow wing man Grant grabbing two. Bustin, Ashley Gibson, Peltier, Pickersgill and Smith also scored tries. A tough test followed this as the Bulls came away from Newcastle Thunder with a narrow 26-16 win. Chisholm, Flanagan, Minchella and Ryan all got on the scoresheet. Meanwhile, youngster Riess Butterworth joined RFL Championship side Batley Bulldogs on loan for a month.[51] The Bulls finished May with a comprehensive 68-0 win over Hemel Stags, Dalton Grant and Elliot Minchella grabbed the headlines scoring a brace of tries each while Chisholm, Flanagan, Garside, Halafihi, Laithwaite, Peltier, Pickersgill and Ryan also scored. Chisholm continued his fine form with the boot kicking 10 from 12.

June started with a 50-12 win against North Wales Crusaders. Matt Garside, Ethan Ryan and Lee Smith scored two tries, Dane Chisholm, Joe Keyes and Brandon Pickersgill also scored tries with Chisholm kicking 7 goals.[52]