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2002 Bradford Bulls season
Super League VII Rank2nd
Play-off resultRunners Up
Challenge Cup4th Round
2002 recordWins: 25; draws: 0; losses: 7
Points scoredFor: 1001; against: 603
Team information
ChairmanChris Caisley
Head CoachBrian Noble
Captain
StadiumValley Parade
Avg. attendance11,542
High attendance14,271 vs. St. Helens
Top scorers
TriesMichael Withers (20)
GoalsPaul Deacon (155)
PointsPaul Deacon (336)
← 2001 List of seasons 2003 →

This article details the Bradford Bulls rugby league football club's 2002 season, the 7th season of the Super League era.

Season review

[edit]

February 2002

As Bradford won the 2001 Super League Grand Final they had to play the winners of the 2001 NRL Grand Final. Newcastle Knights beat Parramatta Eels 30–24 and played the Bulls in the 2002 World Club Challenge. Bradford came away with a 41–22 victory over the Australian champions thanks to a Robbie Paul double and 2 tries from Michael Withers. Bradford were knocked out of the Challenge Cup by a Ben Walker inspired Leeds Rhinos. The Bulls succumbed to a 17–4 loss.

March 2002

The Bulls started off their Super League defence with a hard fought 18–4 win over last years runners up Wigan Warriors. Bradford backed this performance up with a 38–12 win over Warrington Wolves. The Bulls continued their good start to the season by beating Widnes Vikings 22–16. Once again the Bulls overcame the challenge set before them as they recorded 4 wins from 4 games by beating Hull F.C. 32–18.

April 2002

Bradford started April with a 44–12 win over Wakefield Trinity Wildcats. New signing Lesley Vainikolo scored 2 tries to help the Bulls to a victory. The Bulls suffered their first league defeat at the hands of London Broncos as they were beaten 15–14. Bradford soon got back to winning ways as they demolished St Helens R.F.C. 54–22 with Tevita Vaikona scoring a hat-trick. They backed up this fine form with a 44–18 win over Salford City Reds.

May 2002

The Bulls started May off with a hard fought 32–8 victory against Castleford Tigers. The good run came to an end at the hands of rivals Leeds Rhinos. The Rhinos beat Bradford 28–20 at Headingley Stadium. Bradford bounced back from this defeat to beat Halifax Blue Sox 46–22. The Bulls finished May with a hard fought 28–26 win against Wigan Warriors.

June 2002

Bradford started June with a great 40–12 victory over the Warrington Wolves. The Bulls continued their good run of form with a 22–12 win against London Broncos. Bradford then demolished Salford City Reds 48–10 to stay top of the league. Their good run came to an end as the Bulls went down 34–26 to St Helens R.F.C. at Knowsley Road.

July 2002

The Bulls got back to winning ways with a 44–6 win against Widnes Vikings. Bradford then followed this win with yet another victory as they beat Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 36–18. The Bulls continued this run of form with a hard fought 25–24 win at Hull F.C. with Michael Withers kicking the decisive drop goal. Bradford finished the month with a 40–18 win against Castleford Tigers.

August 2002

Bradford started August with a bang as they beat local rivals Leeds Rhinos for the first time this year, a Lesley Vainikolo double helped the Bulls to a 46–18 victory at Valley Parade. The Bulls continued this winning streak by beating Halifax Blue Sox 25–8. Bradford's 6 game winning run was brutally ended by St Helens R.F.C. as the Saints smashed the Bulls 50–22. For the first time this season the Bulls lost two games in a row as they went down 44–14 to Castleford Tigers.

September 2002

The Bulls got back to winning ways with a 46–14 win against London Broncos. Bradford backed this up with a 20–18 win against arch-rivals Leeds Rhinos. The Bulls also beat Wigan Warriors 32–14 however due to a lower points difference Bradford slipped down to 2nd in the table behind St Helens R.F.C. with one game to go. The Bulls finished the regular rounds with a 32–18 win over Hull F.C. however the margin of victory was not enough to claim top spot in the league and Bradford finished 2nd, they finished with 46 points (same as St Helens R.F.C.) but Saints had 14 points more in the points difference column.

October 2002

Bradford faced St Helens R.F.C. in the Qualifying Semi-final at Knowsley Road, the Bulls came out on top as they narrowly defeated the Saints 28–26 in a hard fought contest. In the Grand Final the Bulls lost 19–18 to St Helens R.F.C. however the final second of the game is subject to controversy as Saints captain Chris Joynt gave himself up in a voluntary tackle (a penalty should have gone to the Bulls for this action) in a kickable range which would have given Paul Deacon the chance to win the game 20–19.

2002 milestones

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  • WCC: Paul Deacon reached 300 points for the Bulls.
  • WCC: Lesley Vainikolo scored his 1st try for the Bulls.
  • Round 2: Paul Anderson scored his 25th try and reached 100 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 2: Brandon Costin scored his 1st try for the Bulls.
  • Round 3: Paul Sykes kicked his 1st goal for the Bulls.
  • Round 7: Tevita Vaikona scored his 5th hat-trick for the Bulls.
  • Round 7: Robbie Paul became the 1st player to score 100 tries for the club and he also reached 400 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 9: Jamie Peacock scored his 25th try and reached 100 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 9: Paul Deacon reached 400 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 10: Stuart Fielden scored his 25th try and reached 100 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 13: Michael Withers scored his 75th try and reached 300 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 17: Paul Deacon kicked his 200th goal and reached 500 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 17: Michael Withers kicked his 1st goal for the Bulls.
  • Round 18: Robbie Paul kicked his 1st goal for the Bulls.
  • Round 20: Tevita Vaikona scored his 75th try and reached 300 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 22: Scott Naylor scored his 50th try and reached 200 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 24: Paul Deacon scored his 25th try for the Bulls.
  • Round 25: Nathan McAvoy scored his 50th try and reached 200 points for the Bulls.
  • Round 27: Paul Deacon reached 600 points for the Bulls.

Table

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Pos Team
 Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts Qualification
1 St Helens (L, C) 28 23 0 5 927 522 +405 46 Semi-final
2 Bradford Bulls 28 23 0 5 910 519 +391 46
3 Wigan Warriors 28 19 1 8 817 475 +342 39 Elimination play-offs
4 Leeds Rhinos 28 17 0 11 865 700 +165 34
5 Hull F.C. 28 16 0 12 742 674 +68 32
6 Castleford Tigers 28 14 2 12 736 615 +121 30
7 Widnes Vikings 28 14 1 13 590 716 −126 29
8 London Broncos 28 13 1 14 661 635 +26 27
9 Halifax Blue Sox 28 8 0 20 558 856 −298 16
10 Warrington Wolves 28 7 0 21 483 878 −395 14
11 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats 28 5 2 21 566 899 −333 12
12 Salford City Reds (R) 28 5 1 22 490 856 −366 11 Relegation to National League One
Source: Rugby League Project
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Points difference; 3) Number of points scored;
(C) Champions; (L) League Leaders' Shield Winners; (R) Relegated

World Club Challenge

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LEGEND
  Win
  Draw
  Loss
Date Competition Vrs H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Att
1 February 2002 WCC Newcastle Knights N McAlpine Stadium W 41–26 Paul (2), Gartner, Withers (2), Vainikolo Deacon 8/8, Deacon 1 DG 21,113
2002 World Club Challenge Teams
Bradford Bulls positions Newcastle Knights
6. Michael Withers Fullback 1. Robbie O'Davis
2. Tevita Vaikona Winger 2. Joshua Smith
20. Scott Naylor Centre 3. Matthew Gidley
14. Lee Gilmour Centre 4. Mark Hughes
5. Lesley Vainikolo Winger 5. Kurt Gidley
1. Robbie Paul Stand off 6. Sean Rudder
7. Paul Deacon Scrum half 7. Andrew Johns
8. Joe Vagana Prop 8. Josh Perry
9. James Lowes Hooker 9. Danny Buderus
22. Brian McDermott Prop 10. Matt Parsons
11. Daniel Gartner 2nd Row 11. Steve Simpson
12. Jamie Peacock 2nd Row 12. Daniel Abraham
13. Mike Forshaw Loose forward 13. Bill Peden
3. Leon Pryce Interchange 14. Matthew Jobson
10. Paul Anderson Interchange 15. Clinton O'Brien
15. Brandon Costin Interchange 16. John Morris
29. Stuart Fielden Interchange 17. Clint Newton
Brian Noble Coach Michael Hagan

2002 fixtures and results

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LEGEND
  Win
  Draw
  Loss

2002 Tetley's Super League

Date Competition Rnd Vrs H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Att
1 March 2002 Super League VII 1 Wigan Warriors A JJB Stadium W 18–4 Forshaw, Gilmour, Vaikona Deacon 3/3 14,170
10 March 2002 Super League VII 2 Warrington Wolves H Valley Parade W 38–12 Anderson, Costin, Gartner, Gilmour, McAvoy, Vaikona, Withers Deacon 5/7 13,876
24 March 2002 Super League VII 3 Widnes Vikings A Halton Stadium W 22–16 Lowes (2), McAvoy, McDermott Sykes 3/4 8,844
28 March 2002 Super League VII 4 Hull F.C. H Valley Parade W 32–18 Anderson, Gilmour, McAvoy, Vagana, Vaikona Deacon 6/6 13,268
1 April 2002 Super League VII 5 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats A Belle Vue W 44–12 McAvoy (2), Naylor (2), Vainikolo (2), Costin, Pryce Deacon 6/8 6,647
7 April 2002 Super League VII 6 London Broncos A Griffin Park L 14–15 Costin (2), Vaikona Deacon 1/3 4,605
20 April 2002 Super League VII 7 St. Helens H Valley Parade W 54–22 Vaikona (3), Fielden, Forshaw, Gilmour, Naylor, Paul, Peacock, Vainikolo Deacon 7/10 14,271
29 April 2002 Super League VII 8 Salford City Reds H Valley Parade W 44–18 Lowes (2), Anderson, McDermott, Naylor, Pryce, Radford Deacon 8/8 9,652
3 May 2002 Super League VII 9 Castleford Tigers A The Jungle W 32–8 McAvoy (2), Gilmour, Peacock Deacon 8/8 7,416
10 May 2002 Super League VII 10 Leeds Rhinos A Headingley Stadium L 20–28 Fielden, Paul, Vaikona Deacon 4/4 18,305
17 May 2002 Super League VII 11 Halifax Blue Sox H Valley Parade W 46–22 Deacon (2), Withers (2), Naylor, Paul, Radford, Vaikona Deacon 7/8 10,762
24 May 2002 Super League VII 12 Wigan Warriors H Valley Parade W 28–26 Withers (2), McAvoy, Naylor, Vaikona Deacon 4/5 13,314
2 June 2002 Super League VII 13 Warrington Wolves A Wilderspool W 40–12 Vaikona (2), Deacon, Forshaw, Naylor, Paul, Withers Deacon 6/7 6,619
7 June 2002 Super League VII 14 London Broncos H Valley Parade W 22–12 Paul, Withers Deacon 7/7 9,216
23 June 2002 Super League VII 15 Salford City Reds A The Willows W 48–10 Gilmour (2), Vaikona (2), Costin, Gartner, Paul, Pryce Deacon 8/8 4,806
28 June 2002 Super League VII 16 St. Helens A Knowsley Road L 26–34 Costin (2), Vaikona, Withers Deacon 5/5 12,297
4 July 2002 Super League VII 17 Widnes Vikings H Valley Parade W 44–6 Lowes (2), Paul (2), Gartner, McDermott, Vainikolo, Withers Deacon 5/7, Withers 1/1 10,264
12 July 2002 Super League VII 18 Wakefield Trinity Wildcats H Valley Parade W 36–18 Forshaw, Gartner, McAvoy, Naylor, Vainikolo, Withers Withers 5/5, Paul 1/1 8,288
19 July 2002 Super League VII 19 Hull F.C. A The Boulevard W 25–24 Fielden, Paul, Pryce Deacon 6/6, Withers 1 DG 6,257
26 July 2002 Super League VII 20 Castleford Tigers H Valley Parade W 40–18 Gilmour, Lowes, McDermott, Naylor, Vaikona, Vainikolo, Withers Deacon 6/7 9,316
2 August 2002 Super League VII 21 Leeds Rhinos H Valley Parade W 46–18 Vainikolo (2), Fielden, Gilmour, Lowes, Paul, Vaikona, Withers Deacon 6/7, Withers 1/1 13,631
9 August 2002 Super League VII 22 Halifax Blue Sox A The Shay W 25–8 Naylor (2), McAvoy, Pryce Deacon 4/4, Deacon 1 DG 4,170
16 August 2002 Super League VII 23 St. Helens H Valley Parade L 22–50 Fielden (2), Naylor Deacon 5/5 13,948
25 August 2002 Super League VII 24 Castleford Tigers A The Jungle L 14–44 Deacon, Pryce Deacon 2/2, Withers 1/1 6,697
1 September 2002 Super League VII 25 London Broncos H Valley Parade W 46–14 McAvoy (2), Pryce (2), Withers (2), Lowes, Vaikona Deacon 7/8 8,965
6 September 2002 Super League VII 26 Leeds Rhinos A Headingley Stadium W 20–18 Gartner, Paul, Pryce, Withers Deacon 2/4 15,328
14 September 2002 Super League VII 27 Wigan Warriors H Valley Parade W 32–14 Withers (2), Fielden, Vainikolo Deacon 8/8 12,576
20 September 2002 Super League VII 28 Hull F.C. A The Boulevard W 32–18 McAvoy (2), Deacon, Gartner, Paul, Vaikona Deacon 4/6 8,630

Challenge Cup

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LEGEND
  Win
  Draw
  Loss
Date Competition Rnd Vrs H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Att
9 February 2002 Cup 4th Leeds Rhinos H Valley Parade L 4–17 Gartner Deacon 0/1 11,781

Playoffs

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LEGEND
  Win
  Draw
  Loss
Date Competition Rnd Vrs H/A Venue Result Score Tries Goals Att
5 October 2002 Play-offs QSF St. Helens A Knowsley Road W 28–26 Costin, Deacon, Forshaw, Gartner, Vainikolo Deacon 4/5 15,100
19 October 2002 Play-offs GF St. Helens N Old Trafford L 18–19 Naylor, Paul, Withers Deacon 3/4 61,138

2002 squad statistics

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Further information: Bradford Bulls
  • Appearances and Points include (Super League, Challenge Cup and Play-offs) as of 2012.
No Player Position Tries Goals DG Points
1 Robbie Paul Fullback 15 1 0 62
2 Tevita Vaikona Wing 19 0 0 76
3 Leon Pryce Centre 9 0 0 36
4 Nathan McAvoy Centre 14 0 0 56
5 Lesley Vainikolo Wing 11 0 0 44
6 Michael Withers Fullback 20 8 1 97
7 Paul Deacon Scrum-half 6 155 2 336
8 Joe Vagana Prop 1 0 0 4
9 James Lowes Hooker 9 0 0 36
10 Paul Anderson Prop 3 0 0 12
11 Daniel Gartner Second row 9 0 0 36
12 Jamie Peacock Second row 2 0 0 8
13 Mike Forshaw Loose forward 5 0 0 20
14 Lee Gilmour Centre 9 0 0 36
15 Brandon Costin Stand off 8 0 0 32
16 Alex Wilkinson Wing 0 0 0 0
18 Lee Radford Second row 2 0 0 8
19 Jamie Langley Loose forward 0 0 0 0
20 Scott Naylor Centre 13 0 0 52
22 Brian McDermott Prop 4 0 0 16
26 Paul Sykes Centre 0 3 0 6
27 Rob Parker Prop 0 0 0 0
29 Stuart Fielden Prop 7 0 0 28
30 Richard Moore Prop 0 0 0 0

References

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