Preview: Bradford Bulls vs York Knights - Prediction, team news and lineups

There are three Super League games on the menu this Friday night, and one of them takes place at Odsal Stadium as Bradford Bulls welcome York Knights for a clash between two newly promoted sides.

The Bulls boast a tremendous home record this season, and they will be looking for their fifth Odsal win when they host a plucky York side in the first ever Super League clash between these teams.

Match preview

With just four wins from 12 games this season, Bradford Bulls are still finding their feet following promotion to Super League.

All four of those victories have come on home soil, with the Bulls boasting the same number of home wins as Hull KR, Wakefield Trinity and the Leigh Leopards.

Kurt Haggerty and his men picked up their last league win almost a month ago, when they powered to a dramatic 16-14 victory over Hull FC - a game in which they only scored two tries.

A fortnight ago, the Bulls delivered another valiant performance against high-flying Warrington Wolves, ultimately going down 26-12 at the Halliwell Jones Stadium.

Bradford’s attention now turns to York as they look to bag their fifth Super League win of the season, though that may be easier said than done given the Knights did the treble over the Bulls last year.

York Knights made national headlines when they kicked off their Super League campaign with victories over Hull KR and Hull FC in the opening month of the competition.

Since then, the reality of Super League has hit home, with York losing eight of their last nine matches.

Adjusting to the top tier was never going to be an easy task for Mark Applegarth and his men, though the Knights will be buoyed by some of their attacking efforts in recent games.

Despite facing injury problems, York put 22 points past the Catalans Dragons a fortnight ago, while also scoring 18 against Castleford Tigers a week earlier.

In total, the Knights have scored 230 points in the Super League so far this season, which is just 10 short of seventh-placed Leigh Leopards.

York, who are placed 12th in the standings, will now be setting their sights on their fourth league success, especially with the North Yorkshire side boasting an excellent head-to-head record against the Bulls.

Applegarth’s side won all three of their meetings last season, including a thrilling 20-18 victory at Odsal Stadium - their fifth win in eight visits to the legendary rugby league ground.

Bradford Bulls Super League form:

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York Knights Super League form:

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Team News

Bradford have recently seen Ryan Sutton and Joe Mellor return to training, and both men have been named in the 21-man squad for Friday’s game.

Ethan Ryan, Guy Armitage and Ebon Scurr have also been named in the team, with the trio set to compete for a starting spot.

There is good news for York too, who have been able to name a full 21-man squad for the first time in weeks.

Paul Vaughan, Liam Harris, and Jordan Thompson are all back in the fold upon their return from injury, while Harvey Reynolds links up with the squad as part of his loan move from Newcastle Thunder.

Former Man of Steel Paul McShane has a calf injury and will watch the game from the sidelines, while Will Roberts also drops out of the squad.

Bradford Bulls 21-man squad:

Ackers, Aekins, Armitage, Atkin, Blake, Chamberlain, Dean, Doro, Fulton, Gardiner, Gill, Hooley, Mellor, Nikorima, Peposhi, Russell, Ryan, Scurr, Souter, Sutton, Wynne

York Knights 21-man squad:

Mata’afa, Wood, Galeano, Hingano, Harris, Martin, Vaughan, Thompson, Balmforth, Va’a, Sangare, Richardson, Field, Buchanan, Bennison, Dagger, Reynolds, Vuniyayawa, Hunter, Nofoaluma, Inman