Bradford Bulls Head Coach Francis Cummins looks ahead to Sunday’s Super League Round 23 clash against Wakefield Trinity Wildcats.
How much are you relishing what is clearly a big game for both sides?
Very much so. On the back of a great win against Hull, we have spoken about how we showed a lot of character but also how we can improve on that performance and we have been working very hard over the past two weeks in a few areas. Wakefield have played twice against Leeds, back to back and have showed some good play and run them close in both those games. We have just got prove to ourselves that we can grow more confident in how we play and we need to take that into the game. I am confident we can beat every team we play up to the end of the season but we have to be on out mettle and at or best because Wakefield, very much like ourselves, work very hard for each other.
Has the break come at good or a bad time for you after such a great performance against Hull FC?
With probably the way our numbers and squad is at the moment it’s come at a good time. It’s not the injuries, although there may be some players returning this week but more that it’s the fact that some of our players have played back to back from Round 1. I am thinking of people like Nick Scruton and our middle players. They have had a good couple of week’s training now but we have been able to give them some time off from the full contact they get in a game.
You had a great win over the Wildcats in round 1. How much do think both sides will have changed by now?
There’s no doubt they have changed and improved. We may have caught them on the hop in that game. We started really well and ran through them, so they will be even more determined not to let that happen again and it’s our job to make sure we do that to them again and show the same commitment. They have moved on and they have a lot of play in them but that’s the task in hand for us; to play like we did earlier in the season and stop them from playing.”
How has the announcement earlier this week affected the players?
Well it’s bound to have an effect on them because some of them went through a difficult time last year but they have been told what’s happening and I have told the players that we can only affect what we do on the field. When they get paid that will be that. We have trained very well and that’s all we can control. We know what we have to do and I am confident we will do things in a proper manner.
