BRADFORD Bulls have launched a Women’s side.
The team, which is being sponsored by the Bulls’ main backer Provident Financial, wears kit provided by the Bradford company.
Bradford Bulls Women will play a number of fixtures in 2016 at the Provident Stadium, and will also assist the club with its community outreach programme.
Paul Mitchell, Sponsorship Manager at Provident, said: “Rugby League is not just for men and boys. It’s a family sport so there is a substantial following of women and girls amongst the Super League and Championship fan base.
“The Bulls are setting the standard for clubs, both Super League and otherwise, in diversifying engagement and participation in this great sport.”
He added: “As a company that is proud to be main sponsor of the Bulls and of our support for the Bulls Community Foundation, Provident is delighted to be part of something that we hope catches on at other clubs.”
The Bulls’ Women’s coach, Mark Prescott, said: “I’m really excited about being a part of the Bradford Bulls family. We are going to see a new input from the club and hopefully we can prosper as a result of that.
“We’ve got a very exciting squad and the great thing is that it is growing. We are recruiting from the younger age group now.
“We’ve got a lot of players who have represented England. Five of the team went over to France to represent England last year. Then there are five or six others who have represented England in the past and several of them have played in World Cups as well.”
He continued: “There are a few 16- and 17-year-olds in the ranks and we have a wealth of experience within the team; the England internationals really help the younger girls.
“We’ve got a good squad of players and we are hoping we can push on and win a trophy this season.”
Bradford Bulls Chairman, Marc Green said: “We are delighted to become the first full-time professional club to support and endorse Women in rugby league. We hope this will set us on a pathway to the similar success of other female team sports, such as football, cricket and rugby union.”