Star-studded Wolves are vulnerable – Potter

BRADFORD Bulls head coach Mick Potter admits his side have to start rising up the Super League table and sees no reason why they cannot do so at the expense of high-flying Warrington Wolves.

The Bulls endured a frustrating Easter period, being unfortunate to lose against Leeds Rhinos and then getting held to an 8-8 draw in Perpignan.

They are looking for their first win in five games and are stuck in 10th spot while their opponents at Odsal tomorrow are in third even though they suffered a surprise home loss to Hull FC on Easter Monday.

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Potter said: “We know we need points on the ladder and it’s a concern for us every week we don’t get them.

“As the season progresses, it becomes a little more urgent but I don’t think the players could put in any more urgency or commitment.

“I think they are playing as well as they can and we know we need to keep doing the right things and doing them with commitment and, if we do, the results will come. This will be a good test for us and we need some consistency throughout the game.”

The Australian, who welcomes back prop Tom Burgess, 19, from a knee injury and rested England Knights forward James Donaldson, believes their opponents are fallible despite having a star-studded squad.

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“Warrington have a lot of players who can hurt you if you lapse defensively, particularly from their set plays, but they also play quite a bit off the cuff,” he said.

“Just the sheer amount of offloads they can get in one play is a problem for the team facing them and we can’t afford to have a lull in concentration for one second.

“Warrington can put 60 points on you if you blink and have a couple of players off. But they are beatable, as a few teams have shown this season.

“If they take their foot off the gas, they become vulnerable; you need to be on your game to be able to take advantage of any slips they make.”

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Paul Sykes makes his 250th career appearance tomorrow – it is also his 100th match for Bradford – but Potter is without former Great Britain winger Gareth Raynor, who has a shoulder injury.

Potter continued: “I have to say we didn’t get enough points over Easter.

“The guys went well against Leeds and were probably unlucky in some respects, and against Catalan the weather was bad and that caused it to be an error-ridden game.

“But I was pleased with the defence. Even when they put us under pressure I thought we worked well for each other and covered each other’s options in defence.”