Bradford Bulls superbly dismantle young Leeds Rhinos side

A young Rhinos outfit, pockmarked with first-team talent like James Donaldson and Mikolaj Oledzki returning to the side after injury lay-offs, were blown away by Bulls’ power, determination and nous in the Odsal side's fourth and final pre-season friendly.

The win saw Bulls scoop the Keith Howard Foundation Trophy, an annual pre-season prize played for between the two clubs.

As for who stood out for the hosts, Ebon Scurr and Eribe Doro were powerhouses from the interchange bench as usual, while two-try hooker Mitch Souter was outstanding in both attack and defence.

Yet Leeds’ young side began well, and Bulls were forced to defend two successive sets on their own line, with Dan Smith producing one try-saving tackle.

Dan Smith saved Bulls' bacon early on, with his try-saving tackle stopping Leeds from opening the scoring. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

And Bradford made the Rhinos pay for not taking their chance soon after.

Lee Gaskell clipped a teasing kick towards the posts and Souter brilliantly caught it mid-air, mid-spin to pirouette under the posts and score.

Jordan Lilley added an easy two points to put Bradford 6-0 up, and Gaskell came close to their second try.

He cut a diagonal line near the posts, but as he stretched out to score, some brilliant defending forced him into knocking the ball forwards.

Leeds then got on the scoreboard in bizarre circumstances.

A teasing high kick from Jack Sinfield saw Ben Blackmore stitched up by a horrendous bounce.

The ball kicked up sharply and backwards off the turf, with winger Jack Smith flicking it back inside for Luis Roberts to take the ball down low and slide over in the corner.

Sinfield hit the post with his conversion attempt, so Bradford stayed in front, before stretching their advantage following a superb 50-22 kick by Lilley.

Just moments after coming off the bench, Scurr came agonisingly close to crashing over the line, but Doro made no mistake seconds later, barging over under the posts.

A third try followed close behind for Bradford when Gaskell's clever kick towards the left just evaded the Leeds man's despairing jump.

In the resulting melee behind him, Bulls' on-loan full back Aidan McGowan got a vital touch to claim the score.

Aidan McGowan gets the decisive touch to claim Bulls' third try of the afternoon. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

Lilley converted for 18-4 with a solid strike from the tee, as Bulls entered half-time with a healthy lead.

It only took Bradford five minutes of the second half to add to their advantage too.

Full-back McGowan looked to have thrown a loose pass to a visiting player a few metres out, but Jayden Myers somehow came up with the ball, and crashed over the line down the right.

Lilley's tough conversion attempt zipped wide for his first miss of the afternoon.

He was soon adding much simpler extras, after the excellent Souter barged over from close range, with that converted try putting Bradford 28-4 in front.

Kieran Gill then went close on a couple of occasions, those efforts sandwiching a Blackmore try ruled out for a forward pass, while at the other end, Leeds' Corey Johnson ended up battered, bruised and held up inches short of the line.

Today was not all plain sailing for Ben Blackmore, but the winger was desperately unlucky to see his impressive catch, run and dive go to waste in the second half, as the try was chalked off for a forward pass. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

Prolific Bulls centre Gill was soon on defensive duty, as he put in an astonishing last-ditch tackle to stop Leeds scoring on the break.

Sadly for Gill, that lung-busting effort did not keep the Rhinos for long, as the visitors worked the ball out to the right, and a pin-point mis-pass found Derrell Olpherts on the wing for him to race over.

Poor Sinfield had another devilishly difficult conversion to try and attempt, and he was unable to add those extras, after sliding this attempt wide to the right.

Leeds were buoyed by that fine try and they soon came back at Bulls.

Some really quick hands and smart running got them agonisingly close, only for Justin Sangare to drop the ball a metre away from the Bulls try line.

Gill almost scored at the other end, as he tried to reel in a kick to the left on the bounce, but he knocked it forward and the chance disappeared.

The game was becoming stretched at this point, with Taufua stopping Leeds from scoring again with some nifty footwork, stopping the ball superbly as the visitors kicked through on a two-on-two.

And it was Bulls who had the final say with three minutes to go, as new boy Eliot Peposhi, playing in the unfamiliar position of back row, bundled his way over from close range after the ball was worked patiently from left to right.

Lilley thumped over an excellent conversion to round off the scoring, as Bulls completed a fine 34-8 victory.

There were no major injury concerns for Bulls, though Myers and Billy Jowitt were forced off with a dead leg and jarred back respectively, while absent trialist Dan Moss is awaiting some medical advice following some scan results on an injury.

Bradford play their first competitive game of 2024 next Sunday, where they can knock Dewsbury out of the AB Sundecks 1895 Cup.

The Rams were thrashed 35-6 by Keighley at Cougar Park this afternoon, so if Bulls can win at the FLAIR Stadium next week, that will set them up for a Bradford District showdown with the Cougars on Sunday, February 18 for a spot in the 1895 quarter-finals.

BULLS SIDE THAT FACED LEEDS: McGowan, Blackmore, Myers, Gill, Taufua, Gaskell, Lilley, Lawrence, Souter, Smith, Butler, Hallas, Davies. Interchanges: Scurr, Doro, Flanagan, Appo, Okoro, Peposhi, Arundel, Oakes, Jowitt.