Bradford close in on new signing but lose two more key men with injury

Bradford Bulls coach Kurt Haggerty has revealed the club are closing in on a new loan arrival – but they look set to be without two more key men due to injury.

The Bulls may be handed a rare boost when it comes to injuries, with Haggerty confirming Guy Armitage and Andy Ackers are due to return for this Saturday’s game against Wigan Warriors.

But that news has been offset by the loss of both Jack Ormondroyd and Connor Wynne.

Haggerty said: “We’ll potentially have Guy Armitage and Andy Ackers back but we’ve lost Jack Ormondroyd, who has broken his hand and Connor Wynne who has got a back spasm. We may gain two but we’ll lose two.

“When it rains, it pours. But we’ll keep going and we’ll keep putting performances in. We’re low in outside backs and forwards but we’ll have bodies there and we’ll have people come in.”

However, there may be some good news in terms of recruitment. Bradford were unable to do any loan dealings last week due to Super League clubs opting to keep their fringe players due to a round of reserve fixtures. But with no such games this weekend, the door is ajar for player trading: and Haggerty expects some movement from a Bradford perspective.

He confirmed: “It’s been more active this week in the last two days. We’re getting pretty close on maybe bringing one in but that’s not confirmed yet – but we’re close to one joining us.”

Haggerty did stress, however, that he was not simply going to bring people to Odsal for the sake of it.

“It’s very position-specific,” he said. “You’ve got to have the right people in the position you need. We’re pretty short almost everywhere but we’ve actually got back rowers for example. It’s about making sure the player is competent enough to play Super League too and not just a young kid starting their career out.”