Bradford coach issues injury update ahead of Wigan cup clash as recruitment latest delivered

Bradford Bulls boss Kurt Haggerty has delivered an injury update ahead of their trip to Wigan Warriors , with the news largely positive barring half-back Joe Keyes.

The Bulls travel to The Brick Community Stadium on Friday night in the Fourth Round of the Challenge Cup having won two of their first three games back in Super League before losing out narrowly at St Helens last weekend.

That defeat at Saints, by a 26-22 margin, saw both Elliot Peposhi and Loghan Lewis pick up bans: adding to an already lengthy list of absentees.

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Bradford Bulls coach issues injury update ahead of Wigan Warriors cup clash

Bulls head coach Haggerty sat down with the media for his pre-match press conference on Tuesday ahead of the cup clash against Wigan and hinted that there may be changes to his side.

But it doesn’t appear that many of those will be injury-related, with the news largely positive.

He explained: “Guy (Armitage) is fit and he’s ready to play now, Jayden dropped into some team training today. I don’t think he’s too far away, but he’s not got a chance for this week. Possibly next week.

“His rehab has gone really well, he’s flown through it and been really professional. It’s probably a credit to himself and the medical staff how quick he’s turned things around.

“(Waqa Blake’s shoulder injury) is not a serious one, he’s probably going to miss this week, but he should be back next week.

“We’re walking wounded, we’re sore and we’re hurting a little bit, but we’ve got enough numbers on the training field so we’re okay.”

However, the news wasn’t great where half-back Keyes is concerned. Brought back to the club for a third stint during the off-season, he played in their first two competitive games of the year, but hasn’t been seen since.

Haggerty detailed: “Joe’s got an ongoing back issue, we think he’s seeing a specialist this week, so we’ll know more then.

“It’s bulging discs, so it’s a managing (pain) type of thing, and he’s in a lot of pain at the moment.

“I don’t think it’s every really gone away and coming into a full-time environment where he’s training more and playing in more physical games, I think it’s really catching up with him at the moment.

“I’ve had numerous conversations with Joe and the medical staff, it’s just very much how he responds to treatment and what the next step is in regards to how we fix it in the short-term.

“He’s frustrated and upset, but we know he’ll get back on the field soon.”

‘We’re certainly looking, but it’s got to be the right person and the right position’

Bradford’s return to Super League came with a squad that was pretty thin on the ground, and in addition to the injuries and suspensions, a handful of fringe players have already been allowed to head out on loan to the Championship.

Haggerty has already admitted that he and his backroom team are actively looking to add to their squad, but there is no concrete progress on that just yet.

Ahead of the trip to Wigan, he explained: ” We’re looking all the time, but it needs to be the right person.

“We’ve got a great group and a narrative of working really hard, so I won’t rush on any decision of who we bring in.

“We’re certainly looking, but it’s got to be the right person and the right position. We’re low on bodies and we’re new to Super League, but we take it as it is.

“We’re really cool on it.”