Vegas raises awkward question as wooden spoon looms for Bradford Bulls

The Bulls are one of the two Super League clubs confirmed to play in Las Vegas in February.

But what happens if Bradford finish bottom and their grading position leaves them outside the top 14 for 2027?

It is an uncomfortable question that may remain unanswered until the latest IMG rankings are released in October.

For now, the Vegas fixture offers the Bulls a curious comfort at an uncertain time for grade B clubs.

While he was happy to highlight the value of the club's stateside adventure, Haggerty was less keen to speculate on what it might mean for Bradford's Super League status.

"That one is new to me – we're staying up because we're going to Vegas," he said. "It's a cracker, that one.

"It's nice to have in the back pocket when you're recruiting and speaking to players about the journey we want to go on. We're all impatient at this rugby club and want immediate success and improvement.

"I think we've shown with the team we've had this year that we've put an entertaining style of rugby on the field and have been competitive and competed in large parts of games.

"I reckon if you sat a bunch of rugby fans down in a room and asked if they enjoyed watching the Bulls, we'd be in people's top three most entertaining teams in the competition. I'll take that for now."

But the perception of Bradford's situation requires some context. They ranked 10th in the IMG standings last year, comfortably clear of the danger zone, and have continued to make progress off the field despite a difficult season on it.

"The club has done some fantastic work behind the scenes," added Haggerty. "Jason Hirst, the board and all the people that work over at Odsal have made some fantastic improvements. There are probably a lot of little improvements that people don't see where you have to get up to speed to be full-time.

"What people forget is this club transitioned from part-time to full-time straight into Super League. A lot of clubs that do this go from part-time to full-time in the Championship, learn what full-time looks like and then hopefully have the opportunity to go to Super League.

"This club have gone from part-time to full-time in Super League without a Super League-ready squad. We've done it a lot harder than the majority of teams ever have done coming into Super League."

For all the positives, Bradford's return campaign is in danger of ending with the dreaded wooden spoon after Huddersfield Giants' remarkable turnaround changed the complexion of the battle at the bottom.

There is a determination within the Bulls' camp to prove they belong in Super League on sporting merit.

"We've addressed it today," said Haggerty during Tuesday's press conference. "It's probably the first day where I've really gone big on it.

"Points matter and points difference matters. We don't want the tag of finishing bottom and that will drive us for the rest of the season."

Only points difference separates Bradford from Huddersfield and Hull FC with four games remaining.

Haggerty knows the Bulls cannot afford to let their injury problems become an excuse as they fight to climb off the bottom.

"When you play teams like Wigan, Leigh and Toulouse, if you're feeling sorry for yourself at any point, they will stamp all over your throat," he said. "They won't feel sorry for you.

"We've got to prepare to win. We've got to prepare physically and mentally to be ready for a really tough game every week.

"If you don't, we've shown what can happen in this competition if you feel sorry for yourself."

This season has been a baptism of fire for Haggerty.

The rookie head coach insists the demands of the job itself have brought few surprises.

"In regards to being a head coach, there have been no shocks," he said. "In regards to the injuries, I'm still struggling to get my head around them.

"That's the unprecedented side of it. I think the injuries have thrown everyone off.

"When we've been anywhere near fit, we've shown we can compete with anybody in this competition."

Haggerty does not have that luxury ahead of a testing trip to Leigh.

No side has suffered more injuries than the Bulls this year – and that theme is showing no sign of letting up.

"Ryan Sutton won’t play this week," said Haggerty. "He’s not got a fracture but it’s pretty bad in regard to the ligament damage. Hopefully he’ll be back for Toulouse.

“Luke Hooley looks okay. He’s 50-50 whether he plays this week. Phoenix Steinwede will miss the game with a HIA.

“Waqa (Blake) trained and said his knee is okay. His back is a little bit stiff but he did the full session.

"Joe (Mellor) hasn’t trained today and will be touch and go whether he plays or not.

"I can’t look past this week. At the moment, we’ve probably got around 19 (fit players) right now."