Instead of a moment to remember, Steve Crossley’s first senior try became a rather subdued affair.

The rookie prop was unable to even celebrate after crossing the whitewash during Friday’s clash with Harlequins, with more pressing matters to worry about.

His score came three minutes from the end of the game at The Stoop, long after Bradford’s eighth straight defeat had already been confirmed.

But 20-year-old Crossley refuses to be downtrodden and insists the season can still end positively both for him and his team-mates.

He said: “Obviously I’ve been looking for my first try since I put a Bradford shirt on. I’m glad it came but obviously the game didn’t go our way, so it’s put a damper on it.

“It’s eight on the bounce now. Obviously we’ve felt that but we’re still not going to get ourselves down over it.

“There’s still quite a bit of the season left and we’ve still got a play-off spot to fight for, so this losing run is going to end real soon. We’re going to get it together.”

Crossley was quick to reassure fans that both the players and coaching staff are putting in the effort to bring an end to the current woes.

But he bemoaned the needless errors that have frequently led to the Bulls’ downfall – particularly in the second half at Quins, when a string of penalties destroyed the platform laid by Paul Sykes’ try soon after the break.

Crossley said: “It’s not lack of effort, it’s silly errors really. Penalties and talking back are stuff you can control and things you can’t call a bad call because we’re doing it to ourselves.

“In the second half, it looked like we would come out and do the same as Hull.

“We went in at half-time and got a bit of a rollicking, which we deserved, and got the same sort of team talk as we had the previous week.

“We did start to get that momentum but then there was the sin-binning (for Steve Menzies) and it came apart.”

Whatever happens, Crossley is relishing his chance to impress. After signing a professional contract at the start of last season, he was forced to wait almost 18 months for his big break and is keen to justify the faith shown in him.

He said: “I’ve been waiting a while but it’s worth it. I’m starting to get a few runs now and hopefully I can stay in the squad week in, week out.

“That’s up to me and the way I perform. I’ve had some good involvement and I just need to keep cracking on.”