Bradford relegated to League 1

James Gordon

Former Super League champions Bradford have been relegated from the Championship.

Their fate was sealed by a 26-10 home defeat to Toulouse on Sunday.

They sit 12 points behind Swinton with six games to play, but with Oldham just a point behind and those two sides still to face each other in the run-in, the Bulls can’t get out of the bottom two.

It completes a remarkable fall from grace for the four-times Super League champions, who were only able to take their place in the Championship thanks to a controversial decision by the RFL.

After the old club went in to liquidation, the RFL kept open the Bulls spot in the second tier for a new club playing in Bradford, but they would start with a 12 point deduction.

Bradford won five of their first seven games, but have managed just one win in the last 17, despite retaining a full-time squad and the experienced Australian Geoff Toovey as coach.

Speculation continues as to whether a change in the league structure may offer Bradford a reprieve.


Elsewhere, there were three big home wins in the Championship Shield.
Batley beat Swinton 62-10, Dewsbury defeated Rochdale 56-8 and Sheffield thrashed Oldham 56-16.