Brilliant Batley Bulldogs beat Bradford Bulls in rare Odsal win

Batley’s last victory at one of rugby league’s most famous venues before today, came in 2017 thanks to a 44-18 win in the Championship Shield when the Bulls were already condemned to relegation. Before that, you have to scroll all the way back through the record books to 1972.

But tries from Lucas Walshaw and Josh Hodson, six kicks from on loan star Luke Hooley and a nerveless drop goal from Josh Woods gave Craig Lingard’s class of 2023 a memorable win, inflicting Bradford’s first home defeat of the season in the process.

This thrilling 21-16 success comes on the back of their Good Friday defeat against table-toppers Featherstone Rovers, although Batley have now not lost successive league games since round three in February.

After conceding a couple of early penalties, the Bulldogs found themselves on the back foot straight away and would have gone behind had David Foggin-Johnston - one of four changes Mark Dunning made to his Bulls side which impressively won at Halifax Panthers on Easter Monday - not slipped at the crucial moment when he seemed destined to sneak in at the corner.

That 26-22 win at The Shay was Bradford’s first triumph away from home in the league all season. However, they had not won successive Championship games since round four.

And that chance for Foggin-Johnston, as well as a teasing grubber kick from Jordan Lilley on his 100th appearance for the club, was as good as it got for the Bulls in an error-strewn first half - at least until 90 seconds before the hooter.

A succession of unforced mistakes from the home side gave Batley field position - and eventually led to the game’s opening try.

Ben Kaye, who replaced Alistair Leak, who scored twice in that 2017 Odsal win, was firstly held up on the line before James Brown and Aidan McGowan both couldn’t keep hold of the ball when finding themselves in promising areas.

However, as always with this Batley team, they were not to be denied a deserved try when Walshaw stretched powerfully over the line.

Hooley, in his second game back with the Bulldogs following his loan move from Leeds Rhinos, added the extras along with a penalty as the visitors pushed into an 8-0 lead.

It probably could have been an even bigger advantage before the hooter but, following a set restart ten metres out, Woods, in the starting 13 for Jimmy Meadows, sent a wayward pass straight out of play.

What possibly could have been a 14-0 advantage at the break was in fact narrowed back to just two points when Billy Jowitt crashed over from close range next to the posts with barely a minute of the half remaining. Dec Patton scored his 52nd point of the season with a successful conversion.

If it was to be perceived that the Bulls’ late rally at the end of the first period would give them the impetus at the start of the second at their Odsal fortress, then Dunning would have probably been disheartened by the kick to restart the final 40 minutes going straight out on the full.

Lingard’s men tried to take advantage with Samy Kibula being forced away from the line by a desperate Bradford defence before a high tackle gave them another set of six, which they failed to profit from.

The game further seemed to swing in Batley’s favour when Patton was sin-binned after a near-26-man brawl and Hooley kicked the resulting penalty.

But the home side weren’t perturbed by the numerical disadvantage and went ahead when Foggin-Johnston spectacularly flew over in the corner, with Lilley calmly taking over kicking duties from the reprimanded Patton.

Their slender and fragile lead, however, proved to be just that as Hodson forced himself over the line to give Batley a sniff of a memorable victory.

Leeds’ Hooley converted again before the Bulls’ indiscipline, again, enabled the full back to steer over another penalty - an 18-12 lead as the clock ticked ever-nearer to full-time.

Woods’ drop goal and a Hooley penalty stretched the lead even further to confirm Batley’s only third win at Odsal in 51 years.

And the majority of home fans were already making their way to the exit as Tom Holmes reduced the deficit with seconds left.

Bradford: Holmes, Blackmore, Myers, Gill, Foggin-Johnston, Patton, Lilley, Baldwinson, Flanagan Snr, Scurr, Appo, Thompson, Bibby

Interchanges: Johnson, Jowitt, Butler, Wallace

Tries: Jowitt, Foggin-Johnston, Holmes

Conversions: Patton, Lilley

Penalties:

Batley: Hooley, McGowan, Hodson, Buchanan, Kear, White, Woods, Lillycrop, Kaye, Brown, Manning, Walshaw, Reilly

Interchanges: Meadows, Kibula, Flynn, Gledhill

Tries: Walshaw, Hodson

Conversions: Hooley (2)

Penalties: Hooley (4)

Drop goal: Woods

Referee: Liam Rush