Bradford Bulls boss ‘emotional’ after Hull KR clash as triple injury blow confirmed

Bradford Bulls head coach Kurt Haggerty admitted that he felt a touch emotional after his side’s 40-16 loss to Hull KR, as he hailed the performance and attitude of his side in defeat against the champions.

The Bulls were heavy underdogs going into the game and whilst the scoreline got away from them, they never relented in their effort despite being down to the very bare bones.

Speaking post-match to Bulls TV as he gave his verdict, Haggerty said: “I think first half we were resilient and stayed in it. I thought second half we started poorly and dropped the first three balls in the first three sets, and I think that cost us a bit.

“We’d just found out that we lost Ryan Sutton, who was already out of position in the back-row so that threw us off. But if you speak about attitude, application and effort, then I think you’ve seen it in one night tonight. I thought it was pretty special what they’ve done as a group of men who were down to the bare bones.”

The Bulls were short on bodies before the game but they’d lose three more in the match as Connor Wynne, Guy Armitage and Ryan Sutton were all dealt injury blows meaning Haggerty had to rely on a bench with just 40 Super League appearances – Alfie Leake (debut), Thomas Doyle (6), Jamie Gill (4) and Loghan Lewis (30).

Bradford Bulls sweating on three more injuries

Listing the injury concerns picked up, Haggerty revealed: “Ryan Sutton, calf, Connor Wynne, shoulder, Guy Armitage, I’m not actually sure what it is to be honest. There’s just a lot of bruised and sore rugby players.”

As for outside back Guy Armitage, Haggerty explained: “It doesn’t look great. It was quite an awkward situation, the tackle that he ended up in, but it doesn’t look great right now.

“It’s very early to call (if it’s season over) but I’ve give them the weekend off, so Guy will probably get scanned Monday if he needs a scan.”

The Bulls boss also revealed how that injury toll didn’t diminish the efforts of his players, something that left him ‘emotional’ after the game he admitted.

“I was quite emotional after the game so I had to take a minute before I briefed the team,” he said.

“We lost the game, we were poor in the second half, but what you’ve just seen from a group of men who are not used to playing at this level, some blokes in their first year of Super League, some in their first game, some on one leg, so when you see your team perform for each other like that, effort-based, then you’re very proud to watch.

“You’ve got your captain (Joe Mellor) at 35-years-old making try-saving tackles with 10 minutes to go when the game is gone, and that’s a reflection of the group.”

Bradford will return to Odsal next week when they host another play-off contender in Warrington Wolves before games against Wigan Warriors and Leigh Leopards, highlighting what a tough three weeks they have coming up.

⏲️ Final Bell with Taco Bell!

Defeat against the World Champions, but the players never gave up in the face of adversity. #RunWithTheBulls pic.twitter.com/5hA9m96LXD

— Bradford Bulls (@OfficialBullsRL) July 31, 2026