Covid-19: told by Bradford's best rugby league sides

The virus was first identified from an outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. Attempts to contain it failed, allowing the virus to spread to other areas of Asia and later worldwide.

As of 24 November 2022, the pandemic had caused more than 639 million cases and 6.62 million confirmed deaths, making it one of the deadliest in history.

With the danger that the virus brought, many restrictions had to be put in place, with the UK and many other countries being placed in lockdown. Following the ending of the first lockdown, further restrictions were put in place to help stem the spread of the virus; sport, having been cancelled, was allowed to resume but without spectators in attendance.

It was a strange period for all, and with the gradual resumption of normality, I (Harry Williams) wanted to delve deeper into the impacts of the pandemic on sport in the region, particularly in rugby league - where we have a handful of top-quality sides; both at amateur and semi-professional level.

In this feature piece, I look at Bradford Bulls, Keighley Cougars, West Bowling and Bradford Dudley Hill, four teams that were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in one way or another, whether it be a positive or negative impact.

I was able to speak to numerous individuals who are involved with the clubs to get a greater understanding of what it was truly like to be involved in an athletic environment during the past couple of years.

In this segment of the two-piece feature, I explore the impact of the pandemic on Bradford’s amateur rugby league scene.

For West Bowling and Dudley Hill, the return to rugby brought some new challenges. Both clubs remained in the National Conference League, however, they were placed in the newly formed ‘League F,’ which was essentially a localised competition for one season, with no promotions or relegations in place. Despite there being a gulf in class between some teams (playing in different divisions), the league still formed.

Ryan Hunkin, West Bowling’s manager at the time, thought there was several positives to come out of that campaign.

He said: “For a lot of reasons, it was pretty good for us. We had shorter coach journeys, which meant less expense, we had the chance to re-ignite local rivalries and although we were playing teams from lower divisions for the most-part, we did have a good season on the field.

“Of course, the local rivalries do bring added hunger, however, the hunger was there anyway because we’d been away for so long from the game because of Covid. We did get the odd trip which required a longer coach journey, but we enjoy that social aspect of travelling as part of a rugby league team, so for the most-part it was okay. It was also enjoyable because we finished top of the league, and that helped us prepare well for the following season.”

Distance travelled (Miles).

Hunkin added: “Although there were no promotions and relegations, we tried to change the team’s mindset around that, however, we wanted to get as far as possible in the competition that season. We managed to get into the quarter finals of the play-offs (to be crowned local champions), which was a good achievement and we unfortunately lost to Wath Brow who eventually went on to become runners up in the competition.

“We’d also moved into a new home at that point, so we were desperate to make sure that we made our home ground a fortress, and we certainly did that. It was about setting new targets from the get-go to make sure the season wasn’t a pointless one. That’s why we made it clear to everyone involved ahead of that season to switch their mindsets.”

For West Bowling and Bradford Dudley Hill, as you’ll later find out, the localised league did offer excitement, a challenge and something different. However, for Drighlington, a side who play their rugby in Division Three of the National Conference League, the ‘Covid campaign’ will have contributed to a frequent feeling of exasperation as they were defeated in all 13 of their league fixtures in 2021.

On reflection, Hunkin said: “I presume it was quite difficult for Drighlington because they play in Division Three and they were coming up against Division One and Premier Division teams; no doubt that will have been challenging. For us, we wanted and were well up for the challenge of playing teams in a higher division, but that goes down to mindset and how you want to prepare for your games. You can understand that there are going to be tough times, however, it’s about how you get through those tough times, and we set ourselves the target of coming to teams like Castleford to get a result, and we managed to achieve that, so full credit goes to the players.”

Hunkin added: “It was a very difficult period, you can’t beat around the bush, but we were lucky enough to not be affected too much by the virus internally. We had a couple of incidents where players did get Covid and we had to cancel training or cancel a match or two, but I personally feel clubs were using it as a bit of an excuse towards the back end of that period. That meant that we didn’t get the fluidity in the schedule and it became a bit stop-start towards the end. I’m sure some teams were well aware of their positioning in the table, and although there was no promotion or relegation, I do feel that some teams lent on the Covid excuse once they knew they didn’t have much left to play for.”

Hunkin’s delight was evident when asked about the return to ‘normality’ last season, however, it did throw up a few issues for him and his staff at West Bowling.

He said: “It was great to be back with some sort of normality last season, and to be back playing in Division One of the National Conference League because it’s an extremely competitive competition, and one that is undervalued by people. Each game was challenging because the return to ‘normality’ brought up several different challenges for us; one being the backlog of returning festivals, weddings and stag dos.

“We expected it because all these types of events had been cancelled for so long and our players, as much as anybody for that matter, wanted to go out and catch up on what they’d missed, which meant players had to miss some matches at the weekends. I had no problem with that because I want people to mature, have kids, get married, and live their lives to the fullest. That kind of success is as or more important than success on the pitch.

“So, it was tough because we often struggled to get a consistent squad together, however, it was a problem we had to deal with ourselves.

“It’s great that we have that added element of competition back, with promotions and relegations in play again, as the players feed off it and want it. We as coaches also feed off it because it means we can try to achieve our goals again, which we set before the start of each season. Division One is a very good and a competitive league, and no disrespect to it, but we want to get into the Premier Division, and we can try and achieve that again now that rugby has gone back to normal.”

Harry Williams, who claimed the Man of Steel Award for West Bowling last season, also had his say on what it was like to compete in the 2021 campaign.

He said: “It was a weird one to play in, in all honesty. We wanted to be the best we could be, and to be the best in our region but as you mentioned, there was that element of knowing that we couldn’t get promoted or relegated. On the other hand, we were one of the teams who managed to keep that competitive element going throughout the season because Ryan and the coaches had instilled it into us.

“It was great that we managed to remain unbeaten throughout the season and through that, we created some great memories. I remember going away to Castleford and we perhaps weren’t favourites for that game, but we scored a last minute try to win the game and that memory stuck with the group for a long time.”

Williams added: “I’ve got to say, we did enjoy being able to renew the local rivalries. We hadn’t played teams like Drighlington and Dudley Hill for a while; they were the teams we competed with on the way up to Division One, so it was nice to face off with them. We were also able to challenge ourselves against the likes of Thornhill and Lock Lane, two teams from the division above so it was a good insight to how we’d perform against Premier Division teams.

“On the other hand, you did feel for the teams like Drighlington because they barely won a game all season. We talk about coming back to normality, but for them it must have been hard to make that transition back to ‘normal’ rugby in their division. Losing every week can’t have done any of the players’ confidence any good, and I imagine the memories of that season stuck with them.

“Not only that, that season of losing every week could well have been the turning point for some of the players in deciding to continue with rugby. The players who were close to retiring may have just thought, I can’t be bothered losing very week, so that’s me done.”

Williams, like Hunkin, enjoyed some aspects of that period, however, he admitted that he’s delighted to see the back of it.

He said: “It made me appreciate what I had before. The play-offs mean something when you have your season on the line. Every game and experience means something when there are promotion or relegations on the line, and the Covid period restricted that. So, for that, it certainly made me appreciate what I had before and what I now have again.

“Although I did enjoy some aspects of that strange period, I think me and the team are all delighted that rugby is back to its original state. At West Bowling, we’ve had the goal of reaching the Premier Division since when I can remember, so it’s a blessing that we’ve got the chance to achieve that again.”

Speaking to a fan of West Bowling, they said: “It’s massive for the wellbeing of everyone to be out of that period. For the club, it helps to bring money in again and that’s what amateur sides almost live off, so that’s key.

“On a personal note, it was a strange time to come to the rugby because the restrictions made it feel alien-like. When we weren’t allowed to come and watch too, it certainly impacted me mentally because I come to the rugby for the social side of things. At my age, it’s important that I get out and speak to friends and family, so coming to the rugby is a key aspect in my life. Now it’s back to normality, I’m so thankful.”

For Bradford Dudley Hill boss Steve Wright, as Hunkin did, he got several positives out of the 2021 localised campaign, however, there was one pressing issue which he felt could have been handled better.

He admitted: “I do feel the league could have eased up on discipline issues. They threw a lot of teams together who traditionally have great rivalries, teams who haven’t played against each other for years and there was the added element of Covid, which meant that the players themselves hadn’t been able to play for around two years because of the pandemic. There was always going to be a few tear ups, there was always going to be that rustiness within the players, and there was always going to be that rivalry between the teams.

“We’d all been away from the sport for a long time, so we wanted to come back and enjoy being involved again. However, there were a lot of bans and fines being issued, and that sort of put people on the back foot again. We were being brandished with big fines, bans and although punishment needs to be present on occasions, I think it could have been handled a bit differently-particularly at the start because the lads were getting used to the pace of the game again.”

Wright added: “However, for the most part, it was decent in all fairness because it allowed us to challenge ourselves. When we started our fixtures, we faced off with Underbank who were flying high at the top of the Premier Division bearing in mind we were in Division Two, and we put them to the sword. Obviously, playing standards were a bit all over the place because some players didn’t return to the fold, however, we were lucky in that respect as we had a lot of lads who returned to rugby after Covid.

“The good thing was, although in essence there was nothing to be won, it created localised derbies and we were playing regularly against teams we hadn’t played against for years.

“One thing I will say though is that, although parts were very positive for us, we’ve seen the backlash the pandemic has caused for a number of teams. Kids have been locked up for a long time, they’ve got used to playing on computer games due to being indoors, and older lads have found better things to do, which has meant that some teams have had real availability problems. That’s not been nice to see particularly at local level.”

Wright added: “Looking back to last season where we had complete normality returning within the sport, it was great to have that competitive element back, and although we didn’t have the best of seasons, you could feel the competitive edge more throughout the games and it makes for better rugby. Hopefully we see more rivalries rekindled at local level in the future.”

Ryan Davidson, player-coach at Dudley Hill, said: “It was a strange time because we were never quite sure whether a game would go ahead. It was very nice to face some old rivals in West Bowling and Drighlington, however, we are all delighted to have normality back and to be able to play with freedom again.

A fan of Bradford Dudley Hill commented: “Going to watch the rugby on a Saturday makes my weekend. I love the social aspect and the fact it allows me to get out the house and interact with people, so not having it for a while was of course tough.

“I had to find other ways to get out and enjoy myself, albeit with the restrictions that were in place. I don’t have to worry about that now because we’ve got rugby back, and I can go out and watch the sport I love, whilst getting that social interaction.”

Part two, which delves deeper into the implications of the pandemic on two of the region's best two sides, Bradford Bulls and Keighley Cougars, is also out this week.