Youngsters set for Bulls bow

Bradford coach Steve McNamara is set to hand debuts to young trio Kieran Hyde, Elliott Whitehead and Tom Olbison against Warrington tomorrow night.

At least one of the three will make their debut at the Grattan Stadium as the Bulls squad recovers from the Easter weekend.

McNamara said: “Because of the close proximity between the games, we are a little down and we are running checks on various players and maybe all three will feature. 

“They have all been with us full time since November and if they are called on, then I have every confidence that whoever does play will be ready to go. They will be apprehensive and nervous but it’s an exciting time for a young guy making his debut.”

The Bulls’ joy at defeating Leeds last Thursday was dampened by a disappointing defeat at Wakefield oon Monday, and McNamara wants an improvement from his men against the struggling Wolves tomorrow night.

He said: “The Monday game was a very, very disappointing one for both myself and the players.  I really was disappointed with the result there.  I thought performance wise we had some outstanding individual performances in that game but unfortunately we didn’t have all seventeen players working together on that day. 

“The Leeds game was a very good performance from us.  We were a little bit down on troops but we found a way to play and a way to win and everyone contributed fully both before and during the game and the result was there to be seen.”

Despite the quick turnaround from the Wakefield game, McNamara has been impressed with the energy levels shown by his players.

He added: “They recovered really well and they are looking forward to the next game, not looking back at the previous two games and we are at home in front of the TV cameras in a big game and hopefully that will bring the best out of us.”

The Bulls’ injury worries were not helped by the knocks picked up by youngsters Jason Crookes and James Donaldson last weekend, and they both miss out.