Kear signs new deal at Bradford

Bradford have confirmed that head coach John Kear has signed a new contract that will keep him at the club until at least the end of 2022.

The 65-year-old joined the Bulls ahead of the 2018 season, after they had been relegated to League 1 the year before, and immediately steered the side to promotion back into the Championship.

Among the highlights of his tenure was last year’s Challenge Cup run, in which they reached the Quarter Finals after knocking out West Yorkshire rivals and former Super League champions Leeds Rhinos with a 24-22 win at Odsal.

Kear has also had a huge input in the development of several young players who have come through the Bradford academy ranks, including Ethan Ryan, Matthew Storton and Rowan Milnes.

“I am really pleased to have committed to the club for another two years,” he said. “I believe the club has made massive strides forward off the field and there is a sense of unfinished business about how we have progressed on the field.

“There is a lot of uncertainty around the sport at the moment and I believe it is a commendable show of confidence by the club to look to start making plans despite the uncertainty. We have plenty of optimism that we can build on what we have already achieved and push towards our goals in the next couple of the years.

“We want to continue where we left off prior to the season being halted – we were playing well and the younger players were maturing and I am sure we can still have a meaningful season.

“We want to build a squad that can form the nucleus of a side for years to come and having spoken with (chief executive) Mark (Sawyer), we were keen to get this deal done so we can look at retaining and signing players.

“There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes regarding returning to training and making sure there is a safe environment for staff and players and it will be interesting to see if we can pick up where we left off.

“I have nothing but admiration for what we have achieved on the field since I came to the club and I was sure we would kick on this year – I just want to get back out there when it is safe and look forward. I am sure the fans will be eager to get back – if they stick with us there are positives times ahead I am certain.”