BULLS are braced for what could be their biggest attendance at Odsal in half-a-decade this weekend, with head coach Eamon O’Carroll calling on his side to use the expected white-hot atmosphere wisely.

A win over Wakefield in the AB Sundecks 1895 Cup semi-final today would take Bradford to Wembley for the first time since 1997, a thrilling prospect for the players, staff and supporters alike.

But O’Carroll warned: “We’re excited about the challenge of facing Wakefield and while it’ll be difficult, we’ll give it our best shot at creating some history for the club.

“We have to get the balance right though, of using the emotional side of things to our advantage, but knowing we’ve got to just focus on and control what we can on the field.”

That being said, the prospect of having thousands of fans descend on Odsal for the semi-final is one that excites O’Carroll, who said: “It would be good to have lots of fans in for the game.

“There’s nothing better than a big crowd at Odsal and we know what that can do for the players, whatever the game or occasion here.

“I played for Wigan here when there were nearly 20,000 fans in attendance, so I know, with the ground Odsal is, what kind of atmosphere can be created in it.”

Bulls will go into the game as underdogs, given Trinity have only lost once in all competitions so far this season, going down 14-10 to Featherstone in the Betfred Challenge Cup fifth round.

That cracking start to 2024 includes their thumping 42-12 win over Bradford at Belle Vue on the opening night of the Betfred Championship season back in March.

Asked about how that painful defeat for his side might affect this afternoon’s cup clash, O’Carroll said: “We can take learnings from that game.

“But I’ve recently watched it back and I’d forgotten just how much destruction we suffered (with injuries before and during the game).

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: Lee Gaskell tore his hamstring in Bulls' league defeat at Wakefield in March, and has not played since.Lee Gaskell tore his hamstring in Bulls' league defeat at Wakefield in March, and has not played since. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

“Wakefield deserved the win that night for sure, but we hurt ourselves as well with bad decisions.

“We need to be so good to win this weekend, as well as being very disciplined.

“That doesn’t just mean not giving away penalties, it also refers to sticking to the gameplan we’ve set throughout.

“You have to be on it for the full 80 minutes against Wakefield, or they’ll get you.

“I need to see that we can go to the next level in this semi-final, because we want to be competing in these kind of games regularly.

“Wakefield will be saying the same thing of course, and they’ll be coming here expecting to win.

“Ultimately, whoever turns up for the whole 80 minutes should be the side that brings home the bacon.”

Bradford warmed up for this semi-final with an impressive 38-12 win at Swinton in the Championship last Sunday, moving up to fifth in the table as a result.

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: Dan Okoro crosses to score one of Bulls' seven tries at Swinton last weekend.Dan Okoro crosses to score one of Bulls' seven tries at Swinton last weekend. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

Discussing the impact of that victory on this weekend’s game, O’Carroll said: “We’ve moved on pretty quickly from it.

“But what it did do was provide us with the game we needed to get back to some form.

“It wasn’t a perfect performance, but we did some good things in the match.”