The tie of the round saw the visit of the Bradford Bulls to the Lamport Stadium in Tornoto as the team in fourth place in the league table looked to spring a surprise on the league leaders and reduce their lead at the top of the table whilst securing themselves third spot, at least overnight.

Liam Kay and Joe Mellor were back for the Wolfpack as Brian McDermott’s side came up against the experience of John Kear, the coach with a reputation for springing surprises in big games.

Both sides came out of the dressing rooms like steam trains, it was going to be a brutal encounter between two sides which knew that this could be a defining weekend in their campaigns for Super League 2020.

Nick Rawsthorne seemed to have opened the scoring after just five minutes but a superb ball and all tackle from Ethan Ryan wrapped the ball up over the line. The winger did get the first try of the game on eleven when he took a high pass in an acre of space to go in out wide. Gareth O’Brien was unable to add the conversion from the touchline. It had been a breathless opening to the game.

Rawsthorne made it two inside ten minutes when he slid over after taking a Josh McCrone pass on the first tackle from the back of the scrum. O’Brien pulled his conversion across the front of the sticks, Toronto eight points to the good.

Beswick was held up on his back after twenty-five, but on the next play Adam Sidlow found a gap in the Bulls defence to score against his former side. This time O’Brien hit the target to put his side 14-0 ahead. The Bulls had been industrious but they had no answer to the Wolfpack onslaught.

Just after the half hour Ross Peltier came onto a pass ten metres from the Toronto line and despite the attentions of four tacklers he stretched out to ground the ball. Elliott Minchella added the conversion for 6-14.

It was two in four minutes for the Bulls, thanks to Rowan Milnes and a neat one-two with Sam Hallas, culminating in a deft inside pass for the scrum-half to score. Michella added the extras, the Bulls just two points behind with three minutes of the half remaining.

O’Brien was held up on his back two minutes after the restart, and on forty-eight Joe Mellor was unable to get his hand on the ball as he chased a low kick. Against a robust Bulls defence it took fifteen minutes before Ricky Leutele took a Liam Kay inside pass to finally break through. O’Brien grabbed his second conversion of the afternoon and Toronto were 20-12 ahead.

On sixty-two Chase Stanley was on hand to take an O’Brien pass and take one step over the line to ground. O’Brien smashed his kick between the uprights for a fourteen point lead.

A delightful Darcy Lussick break put O’Brien clear to scamper over under the posts from twenty metres to score the sixth Toronto try and take the game beyond the Bulls. O’Brien added the extras for 32-12.

The Bulls weren’t finished though. On seventy minutes an Ethan Ryan offload went into the hands of Dalton Grant who managed to ground in the corner. Minchella was unable to add a difficult touchline conversion.

With seconds left on the clock Liam Kay marked his comeback match with a try, chasing and grounding a pinpoint Joe Mellor grubber kick to the corner. O’Brien couldn’t add the conversion but Brian McDermott’s side had a 36-16 win to go back four points clear at the top of the table.

This was a quality match played between two sides who were dogged in defence and prepared to give the ball plenty of air when the try line beckoned. It was an excellent first half Bulls fightback but Toronto were too strong in the second half as the Bradford defence tired. Toronto won’t take the challenge of the Bulls lightly in future encounters, and the Bulls can build on this performance knowing that they have the game to run the league leaders close

Wolfpack: O’Brien (T, 4G), Rawsthorne (2T), Stanley (T), Leutele (T), Kay (T), Mellor, McCrone, Lussick, Beswick, Sidlow (T), Dixon, Thompson, Wilkin.  Subs: Ackers, Olbison, Sims, Mullally.

Bulls: Ryan, Grant (T), Minchella (2G), Oakes, Foggin-Johnston, Milnes (T), Lilley, Kirk, Hallas, Crossley, Storton, Farrell, Wood. Subs: Doyle, Pickersgill, Green, Peltier (T).

Referee: M Griffiths.

Half-Time: 14-12.

Full-Time: 36-16.

Attendance: .