Rugby

The Bradford Bulls moved to within three points of an engage Super League play-off place after sensationally blanking a Huddersfield Giants side with a 36 - 0 victory at Odsal Stadium.

The Bulls bounced back from two successive defeats in stunning fashion, with a clinical performance that belied their league position in blustery conditions that saw several handling errors occur.

Ben Jeffries, Paul Sykes (twice) and Michael Platt all crossed in the first half, while Patrick Ah Van and Brett Kearney added further scores after the interval.

Ah Van added the extras to three tries as well as a penalty, while Sykes converted Kearney's try and a penalty of his own.

Even the return of talismanic scrum-half Danny Brough, who made his first appearance in six games following an ankle injury, failed to inspire the Giants.

At times, they were the architects of their own downfall as they suffered their fourth defeat in six matches to lose further ground on Super League leaders Wigan Warriors.

That should not at all detract from Bradford's efforts as they reminded everyone of their true credentials as their defensive stance remained unbroken.

The Bulls had conceded 34 points against both Catalan Dragons and Castleford Tigers but their backline was almost flawless.

They were equally impressive on the offence, although they were indebted to several Huddersfield errors to set them on their way.

David Hodgson's knock-on deep in his own half gave Bradford possession, while the visitors were penalised twice more before the ball was scrambled to Bryn Hargreaves and his short pass allowed Jeffries to exploit a gap in the defence to open the scoring.

With the bit between their teeth, Bradford attacked with venom and when Hodgson had been dragged into touch after collecting Jeffries' chip, the ball was quickly manoeuvred to Sykes on the right to crash over.

Giants coach Nathan Brown had stressed the need for improvement following their defeat to Warrington Wolves but they were firmly on the back foot and when they finally put pressure on Bradford, Larne Patrick dropped the ball, under pressure, inches short of the try line.

The second-rower was made to pay for his profligacy when Sykes squirmed free of the Huddersfield defence to cross five minutes later.

The hosts were a scarcely believable 22-0 up by half-time when Scott Grix's kick was charged down by opposite number Platt, who collected the ball before charging over.

Shell-shocked Huddersfield thought they had made an ideal start to the second half when Joe Wardle finally broke through Bradford's barriers, but his effort was chalked off due to obstruction in the build-up.

Huddersfield were once again penalised when James Donaldson was held down by Danny Kirmond and Bradford decided to take the two points, with Ah Van successfully kicking over from 30 yards in front of the posts.

Paul Sykes took over kicking duties and added a much trickier kick five minutes later following another Huddersfield error.

Eorl Crabtree was sin-binned for persistent offending, while the visitors’ woes were further deepened when Ah Van touched down after the ball had been spread to the right wing on Bradford's next set of six.

And Kearney got in on the act when he latched on to Marc Herbert's pass to dash over in the left corner to complete the rout.