Bulls' close encounter

Bradford Bulls 27

A 79th-minute Paul Deacon field goal attempt that drifted agonisingly wide almost earned the Bulls a draw in a bizarre end to an epic encounter at Knowsley Road.

The cold, hard facts are that the Bulls now languish mid table after dropping both of their Easter weekend matches against the competition's top two clubs.

However, Brian Noble's side showed, albeit in defeat, that they can't be written off just yet.

Just as against the Rhinos on Thursday night, the Bulls were the better side for lengthy spells. But, once again, it was a series of calamitous errors in possession that ultimately proved costly.

Twice the Bulls crossed the Saints line only to hand over the ball cheaply and invite Saints to strike right back, while skipper Jamie Peacock's reckless offload turned a promising attack into a 90-metre Saints try just five minutes before the break.

That breakaway - sparked by Kiwi international Vinnie Anderson when he scooped up Peacock's wild, aimless pass and finished by the supporting stand-off James Roby - meant the Bulls went to the break 16-6 down.

It was a cruel state of affairs after Andy Lynch had put them deservedly in front after a dominant opening quarter from the Stuart Fielden-led forward pack.

Lynch did well to pounce on Deacon's grubber in the 21st minute and Deacon duly added the extras but, with his very next touch, the former Castleford prop undid all of his good work. Lynch's attempted offload was picked off inside the Bulls 20 and, on the last tackle, hooker Keiron Cunningham stabbed a neat grubber through for full back Paul Wellens to score.

The try galvanised Saints, who turned ten minutes of pressure into points when Sean Long and Vinnie Anderson combined to send Mike Bennett through a gaping hole. Hardman's conversion attempt was astray but he made no mistake just a minute later after Peacock's injudicious offload had found its way to the lurking Anderson.

Saints made a lightning start to the second half but, somehow, the Bulls clung on before rocking the hosts with a try of their own against the run of play.

Nothing much looked on when a looping pass fell at Karl Pryce's feet in the 48th minute but the young centre, who has scored on every appearance this season, plucked the ball from his bootlaces without missing a stride and cut back against the grain to defeat a host of would-be tacklers on his way to the line.

A gaping head-wound sustained en route to the line meant it was Pryce's last act of the day and he made way for a debut by former age-grade rugby union star Matt Cook.

Saints hit straight back with a second try to Wellens, who spotted a gap up the middle and evaded Rob Parker on his way to the line. Hardman's conversion re-established Saints' ten-point buffer but two converted tries in the space of three minutes saw the Bulls take a two-point lead into the final quarter.

Paul grabbed the first, ghosting across the line before nipping through the tired Saints line for a trademark try, which was quickly followed by a bullocking second from Lynch.

Three tries in ten minutes meant the Bulls' tails were up but, once again, over-enthusiasm proved their undoing. Lee Radford attempted unsuccessfully to offload inside his own 20 and Saints needed no second invitation. Scrum half Long fed Australian speedster Darren Albert and the winger comfortably outstripped Jamie Langley on his way to the left-hand corner.

Hardman failed with his sideline conversion attempt, meaning Deacon could level matters with a hotly-disputed 66th-minute penalty. Saints boss Ian Millward claimed Deacon's kick had sailed wide and the reaction of the Bulls fans behind the posts seemed to back him up. But the goal stood.

Back-to-back offences from Joe Vagana gave Hardman two chances to put Saints back in front and, after fluffing his first shot at goal from 38 metres, he made no mistake with the second from just 25.

Then it got strange.

Trailing by two points with five minutes on the clock, Deacon spurned the chance to hoist a kick inside the Saints' 20, instead calmly slotting a field goal to bring the score to 28-27. Deacon's reaction suggested he had thought the scores were level, a theory supported by Saints boss Ian Millward, who admitted he thought Deacon's misjudgement would lead to a draw.

"I realised he made a mistake and it worried me," said Millward.

"I knew he could kick another field goal from anywhere. A draw is like taking your sister to the pictures - there is not much more you can do. It would have been that much effort from everybody, 80 minutes of torture, and what would we have got out of it, one point each? There had to be a winner and a loser here today."

There was.

With just over a minute remaining, Deacon's 35-metre field goal attempt drifted wide. Three plays later Saints merely needed to kick the ball out to secure the victory. But, rather than head for the safety of the touchline, they went straight up the middle and Wellens found another hole to seal the result and underline his man-of-the-match performance with a hat-trick.

It was a cruel end for the Bulls, who deserved at least a point for their efforts.