MATHESON DISCUSSES WOMEN'S SEASON

We spoke to Bradford Bulls Women’s head coach Connor Matheson to look back at his first few games in charge – and look ahead to the rest of 2024…

Last time out against Warrington…

“I thought we played really well last time out (against Warrington). I think that the team we have currently has got a lot of young talent so we went out against Warrington with a bit of an open mind. 

“We didn’t expect to go out and put a big score against them, we just wanted to go out there and prove to ourselves we can play pretty well. The score line didn’t do us justice, at half time there were only 24 points in it so for the girls afterwards, spirits were pretty high. 

How the squad is gelling after the first three games… 

“We’ve got a lot of young girls in the team but for quite a lot of them, I’m starting to see we can move them into different positions when needed. Some of the girls are carrying injuries so we’re limited but the younger players are stepping up and moving into those positions we need to fill. 

“For the rest of the season I think we are only to grow and get better, as long as the girls keep coming into training and putting the hard work in then I think the season is looking pretty bright. 

Targets for the upcoming year… 

“From the very beginning I’ve said that we’ve got the plan of a two-year structure, so this year we want to build the foundations of a team which we’ve started to do. We want to get into a position where we have the players and the numbers. 

“Ideally, this season we will finish in the top 4. If we can prove to ourselves we can play top 4 rugby then we can only develop to next season, looking to compete to be able to get back into Super League, which is where we want to be.”

Credit: Matthew Richardson