Round 25
Bradford Bulls 42 d. Les Catalans Dragons 18

2009 engage English Super League Index [Table] [Draw] [Player Stats] [Club Headlines]

Location: United Kingdom > National > First Grade Competition: engage English Super League

Bradford continues good end of season form
Mon August 24, 2009
Source: www.superleague.co.uk

Bradford's recent renaissance continued with a comprehensive third successive victory - but an engage Super League play-off berth still looks almost certain to be beyond them.

The resurgent Bulls effectively secured their fourth win in five games by half-time after running in four first-half tries from Sam Burgess, Rikki Sheriffe, Chris Nero and Steve Menzies.

Catalans led when Sebastien Raguin touched down but they capitulated after influential England prop Sam Burgess came off the bench to cross the line in the 18th minute.

Sheriffe, Nero and Menzies added further scores before the break and the Dragons' pitiful resistance allowed Wayne Godwin, Paul Sykes, Paul Deacon and Glenn Morrison to go over in the second half.

The result takes Bradford to 21 points but they must beat Salford City Reds and Hull FC in their two remaining games and hope other results go their way if they are to secure an unlikely top-eight finish.

Catalans' own play-off hopes remain in the balance after this defeat and coach Kevin Walters was left bitterly disappointed by his side's alarming collapse.

They led in the 11th minute when Cyril Stacul broke the Bradford line and raced 60 metres before his progress was halted by Bulls full-back Dave Halley.

Yet the Frenchmen quickly recycled the ball out wide to the left flank where Dimitri Pelo sent Raguin scampering over in the left corner.

Gregory Mounis added the conversion from a difficult angle but the Bulls conjured a spirited response and drew level in the 18th minute.

Burgess came off the bench to embark on a typically marauding run and he showed intelligence to find Jamie Langley before taking his team-mate's reverse pass to cross between the posts.

Deacon added the first of his five conversions and the pendulum began to swing heavily in Bradford's favour.

They forged ahead in the 32nd minute when Burgess again showcased his awesome quality to burst through midfield. His ambition got the better of him as he was tackled when he should have offloaded to one of his supporting team-mates.

However, the Bulls kept the ball alive and Langley found Michael Platt and he sent Sheriffe in at the right corner.

Deacon failed to convert but three minutes later he created his side's third score with a teasing kick which Nero pounced on in the left corner.

Bradford's dominance continued and they claimed a fourth score when Halley seized on a mistake in the Catalans backline and ushered Menzies over the line from close range.

Deacon converted to give his side a commanding 20-6 lead at the break and that lead was stretched further in the 52nd minute when Godwin showed impressive strength to burrow his way over the line.

Deacon added the extras and three minutes later Sykes' delightful footwork saw him weave through a stunned Catalans defence for a fine individual try.

Deacon's trusted right foot gave Bradford the extra two points and the scrum-half then took advantage of Catalans' pitiful resistance by going over himself in the 58th minute for a try he subsequently converted.

Catalans hit back when Cyrille Gossard caught Bradford napping and Mounis landed his second conversion but Bradford had their eighth try soon after when Morrison charged through another gaping hole to touch down.

Sebastien Martins replied for Catalans in the closing stages and Mounis landed his third conversion but that did little to mask Bradford's dominance.


Bulls Eye: Bradford v Catalans
Fri August 21, 2009
Source: www.bradfordbulls.co.uk

In Bulls Eye this week, Bradford Coach Steve McNamara looks ahead to Sunday's engage Super League round 25 clash at the Grattan Stadium when the Bulls take on the Catalans Dragons.


STEVE McNAMARA
WHAT DID YOU TAKE OUT OF LAST WEEK'S GAME?
I think we took a lot out of it. We performed pretty well throughout most of the game and showed some different aspects of our game, which was very pleasing for us. Plus we got another two points on the league ladder for ourselves.

I think we have performed much better in our last two games and, as I said last week, we have certainly performed with much more freedom and less anxiety and it's certainly paid dividends. The players certainly enjoyed it and I thought they were good with the ball for large parts of the game and defensively I thought we were very good in the ruck area too.

The next game is going to be important for us. Things are out of our hands, as regards to the Pay Off's and they have been for a number of weeks. We have just made a commitment to ourselves to finish the season off in the best possible form we can and it would be nice to be regarded as the form team as the season ends and that would be good. And if that form managed to get us further, then so be it as well, so there is a whole host of reasons to play well between now and the end of the season.

HAVING PLAYED WITHOUT THE PRESSURE, AS YOU SAY, THEN WHERE HAS THAT PRESSURE ? ANXIETY- COME FROM?
A lot of it has come from ourselves, when we have made ourselves a little bit anxious but we have certainly played very well in our last three games away from the Grattan Stadium. We have certainly enjoyed playing those games and the support we have received from the supporters at those games has been fantastic. What we need to do now is reproduce that form at home and get our own fans behind us and give them plenty to cheer about.

It has been a bit of an upside down season for a lot of teams ? sides losing at home and winning away - and we have spoken about that. I do think we have played well at times this season and not got the points and that builds up some anxiety but the boys seem to have cut the rope there and it's good to see them enjoying their football.

NEXT UP IS CATALANS. WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THEIR YEAR?
I think they are another side who have played a little bit below themselves and been a little bit anxious at times and they have certainly lost some games they could have possibly won and won a couple of games they could have lost but in the last four to six weeks they have put a bit of a run together and forced themselves into the top eight. There is no doubt that the quality of their personnel is right up there with the best in the competition. They are a very big side and they have some very astute players. They have been a little like us in a lot of areas and we are really looking forward to the game today.

We have had two cracking games against them already this season, one when we won on the last play of the game and the Challenge Cup game we lost in dramatic circumstances. There was no excuse for losing that lead in France but there were some circumstances behind that and again we very nearly scored off the last play of the game and perhaps we should have done but that's happened to us throughout the year.

It goes right back to the first two games of the season - against Hull KR and Huddersfield - where we completely dominated those sides and ended up with one point from both games. We know now that if we get a side by the throat we need to keep hold of them and we will be aiming to do that against Catalans this week.

Catalans are a big side, probably bigger than we are now and so were Huddersfield but we really relished those big hits last week and we will need to do the same on Sunday.

SQUAD
Steve McNamara will name his squad on Friday but will lack the injured Terry Newton, who has had an operation on his cheekbone.

"We should not be too bad off this week and I feel we have got the balance right between work and rest and we should be OK with what we've got for Sunday."

MILESTONES
PAUL DEACON has kicked 76 Goals from 96 attempts this season for a percentage of 79.17%.

Both MICHAEL PLATT and CHRIS NERO require just 2 points for a career total of 250. Nero has scored 62 tries, 48 for Huddersfield Giants and 14 for the Bulls, whilst Platt's 62 tries have come from 5 with Salford City Reds, 11 with Rochdale Hornets, 23 with Castleford Tigers and 23 with Bradford Bulls. Nero's 62 tries have come in 164 appearances whilst Platt's have come in 165.

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