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Bradford Bulls head coach Kurt Haggerty has tipped his hat to Leeds Rhinos\u2019 Jake Connor for a game-changing moment in his side\u2019s loss at Headingley.<\/p>\n
The Bulls were playing a Super League match at Headingley for the first time in over a decade but any hopes of causing an upset slipped away in the 50th minute of their 42-12 defeat<\/a>.<\/p>\n With the score at 18-12 and Bradford in the ascendancy, Connor kicked a booming 20\/40 from his own 15-yard line with the ball leaving the field on the Bulls\u2019 10-metre line.<\/p>\n From that set Leeds would score and just two minutes later another Connor kick wasn\u2019t dealt with and Brodie Croft pounced to score, opening up a three-try lead and putting the game out of sight for the Bulls.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a pretty big moment from a classy player,\u201d Bulls coach Kurt Haggerty said post-match when speaking to Sky Sports about Connor\u2019s 20\/40.<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes you can cop them but we could have been better with the ball and there\u2019s plenty of resilience, but sometimes you\u2019ve got to hang your hat on it, it was a pretty special moment.\u201d<\/p>\n Bradford Bulls star suffers dislocated shoulder in defeat to Leeds<\/p>\n That wasn\u2019t the only reason that Bradford lost but it certainly was a turning point in what was en error-strewn game with Leeds actually making more than the Bulls, 16 to 13, however, the errors seemed to punish Haggerty\u2019s side more.<\/p>\n Most Read on Serious About Rugby League<\/p>\n On that error count, he said:\u00a0\u201cWe have a certain way that we play and ultimately when fatigue kicks in that\u2019s when you\u2019ve got to be your best, when you want to play on a high-skilled team, so we\u2019ll have to cop that one and we\u2019ll certainly get better.\u201d<\/p>\n They were also hampered by playmaker Jayden Nikorima leaving the field with a dislocated shoulder, whilst prop Jack Ormondroyd could not complete the game.<\/p>\n Offering an update, he said: \u201cJayden\u2019s shoulder has come out but gone back in. Jack Ormondroyd is an ankle, so it just adds to the list.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite the defeat, the Bulls fans were loud and proud at Headingley and their players didn\u2019t let them down, something Haggerty commented on.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m glad that gets across, the effort that the players put in every week,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know where we\u2019re at as a club, we know where we want to go to. I\u2019ve got a team that\u2019s scrap and fight and are resilient every single day we train and when we we play.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re a great group and we\u2019ll get better as we go. We\u2019ve got another seven games together as this group, so we\u2019re looking forward to that.\u201d<\/p>\n With just seven games to go in their first season back in Super League, the message from Haggerty was clear: \u201cWin as many as we can. We go to Hull KR next week, we\u2019re going to look forward to that, it\u2019s another great test, and we\u2019ll just keep chalking off as we go.\u201d<\/p>\n The Rhinos claim an impressive victory in Rivals Returns \ud83e\udd8f#SuperLeague<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/L0MQOtZy75<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Betfred Super League (@SuperLeague) July 26, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1783977013_96_srl-logo.png\"\/){kind=logo}
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