Carl Forster Backs Bradford’s Pressure Ahead of York Clash — Bulls Vs York Knights
Bradford Bulls head into bulls vs york knights with Carl Forster stressing the same burden that follows every shirt in the squad. The assistant coach said the club expects to win every week, and that standard hangs over the Betfred Super League clash with York at Odsal.
Forster Sets Bradford Standard
“No, because we prepare to win every single week.” Forster said that when asked whether the game brought added pressure. “That’s the philosophy for all of us coaches, that no week is different in that sense.”
He also pointed to the mood inside the camp before kick-off. “It’s a new week and it’s a massive game under the lights,” he said. “We’ve done a lot of homework on York and the boys are in a positive mood.”
Bradford were trying to get back to winning ways, and Forster described the fixture as “a huge week for us as a team.” The mood around it was sharpened by the build-up, because Bradford and York were battling in the Championship last season and now meet as two of the three newly-promoted sides.
York Build-Up At Odsal
Forster did not soften the message on expectation. “But there’s pressure every time you put a Bradford Bulls shirt on, and that expectation to win is driven within our camp.”
The line matters most for a squad still carrying injury questions. Joe Mellor, Ryan Sutton, Andy Ackers, Ethan Ryan, Ebon Scurr and Guy Armitage were all in contention to play again after injury, giving Bradford several possible returns for a fixture that already carried extra edge.
That list gives Bradford options, but it also shows how much the club still has to manage before it can settle into a routine team sheet. The coaches can lean on returning bodies if they are cleared, yet the standard Forster described does not shift while players are coming back.
Riley Dean And Eliot Peposhi
Riley Dean could make his first Bulls appearance after being only 18th man in the defeat to Warrington last time out. On that night, Eliot Peposhi played at prop, and Forster said he knew him from St Helens and that Peposhi “predominantly came through as a 13 there.”
Forster said Peposhi’s flexibility gives Bradford more range, noting that “it just means he has more strings to his bow.” He added that Peposhi “did really well” and brought “a lot of energy to the group” when he started in the middle at Warrington.
For Bradford supporters, the practical takeaway is straightforward: the pressure has not eased, and the squad may look different by the time the shirt numbers are handed out at Odsal. The club expects the same result-driven standard even as it waits on those injury returns and weighs Dean’s chance to debut.
