Bradford Bulls came out as the sinners in the latest clash against rivals St Helens at the Grattan Stadium. Despite an encouraging first half, the home side could not replicate the excellent victory they enjoyed at Knowsley Road in April and remain languishing in the bottom half of the Super League table. The result followed two encouraging wins against Wakefield and Warrington and further cements Bradford's reputation as the most inconsistent side in this 14th season of summer rugby.

A home win against the Wildcats on 7th June was the perfect antidote to the previous week's reversal against Salford, with captain Paul Deacon exhibiting a range of kicks which decimated the opposition. A fine brace from Chris Nero and a further two tries from Steve Menzies capped off a solid display, though coach Steve McNamara will surely have been concerned that the team conceded as many tries as they scored - only Danny Brough's abject performance with the boot prevented the scores being closer than the final 34-22 scoreline.

Bradford's excellent start to the second half of the Super League season continued on the 14th June with a visit to the Halliwell Jones Stadium to take on the Wolves. Deacon again managed a 100% success rate with kicks, including one drop-goal, with Morrison, Newton and Nero scoring four-pointers to take the tie beyond a depleted Warrington side. After the game, the Bulls coach praised his players' tenacity and promised to push on towards the play-offs. "Right from the start we were on the upper hand today and thankfully we pushed on," McNamara commented.

Unfortunately, Bradford could not make it a hat-trick of wins on 21st June, when league leaders St Helens exacted revenge on the Odsal outfit. A superb second half display from the champions-elect helped to quash the Bulls' spirit, with seven members of the opposition crossing the Bradford line in all en route to a 44-18 triumph.

Up next for the team is a daunting trip to Headingley to take on reigning champions and bitter rivals Leeds Rhinos, in what is sure to be another hot-blooded encounter.