Bradford Bulls dip back into recruitment market to sign Australian forward
Bradford Bulls have dipped back into the recruitment market to sign towering Australian forward Phoenix Steinwede.
The 23-year-old touched down in England on Monday morning after signing a permanent deal until the end of the season.
Steinwede – a back-rower who is also capable of playing in the middle – has had spells with Sydney Roosters and Gold Coast Titans, as well as gaining experience in the NSW and Queensland Cup competitions.
He becomes the fourth player to join Kurt Haggerty's squad since the start of last week, following Chris Atkin, Jack Ormondroyd and Tray Lolesio through the door at Odsal.
Haggerty views the latest deal as a sign of Bradford's intent after a promising start to their second spell in Super League.
"He's young, he's big, he's athletic and he suits how we want to play so we're really happy to get him over the line," said the Bulls boss.
"Phoenix was actually brought to my attention when I first came to the club but because things happened so quickly, we just had to get so many players over the line in a short space of time.
"I've seen him play for the Titans in the trial game against St George and there are a lot of things that he did in that game that showed me that he's potentially a really good player for the Bradford Bulls.
"We're going pretty well at the moment and have some wins under our belt but we need to keep strengthening to take that next step."
Steinwede already has two appearances under his belt in 2026 after representing Tweed Seagulls in the Queensland Cup.
He trained with his new team-mates on Monday and could come into contention for Thursday's away clash with Castleford Tigers.
"This is a really exciting career opportunity because of what the club are building here," said Steinwede.
"This is about challenging myself now, getting into full-time and seeing where it can take me and develop my game in the best ways I can.
"I feel like this is the best leap forward in my career and I jumped at the opportunity.
"It was unbelievable watching the support that the Bulls get every week and at the same time, their style of footy really interests me. It is now about being able to adapt to what they're doing.
"I flew in this morning, put the boots straight on and had a run at training. I'm really eager and can't wait to put the jersey on and play with these boys."