Batley Bulldogs: Sombre Bulldogs left to lick wounds

DISAPPOINTED COACH John Kear says there were no excuses for Batley Bulldogs' 34-6 home drubbing by Featherstone Rovers.
John KearJohn Kear
John Kear

The result left Batley clinging on to the Kingstone Press Championship’s final top-four spot by a point from Bradford Bulls and Featherstone with two rounds left in the regular season.

A win would virtually have sealed a place in the middle-eights Qualifiers, but Kear said: “They absolutely played us off the park. People tend to forget that sometimes the opposition turn up and absolutely out-play you and that’s what they did. They were better than us in every department and in all honesty, 34-6 was probably pretty accurate.”

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Kear added: “We are still in it, but obviously the mood was very sombre afterwards in the changing rooms. The players realise they haven’t done themselves justice and it is more disappointing because we were at home. Before that our only home defeats were against Swinton and Catalans – all the Championship teams who have visited us, apart from Swinton, had gone away having had something taken off them. We were proud of our home record, but it has been severely dented by that defeat.”

Kear, who said Batley came through with no major injuries, is hoping to make a signing before Sunday’s visit of second-placed London Broncos.