City Reds v Bulls: Teams
Salford City Reds will be hoping to maintain their good form against the Bradford Bulls in Friday's meeting.
Last Updated: 18/05/12 10:09pm
Salford City Reds will be hoping to maintain their good form against the Bradford Bulls in Friday's meeting.
Phil Veivers' men won 38-18 at Odsal earlier in the season having thumped the Bulls 56-16 at Salford last season.
Bradford have been much improved since the March defeat and now lie three points clear of ninth-placed Hull KR in the Stobart Super League table.
Mick Potter's side are dangerous away from home as their recent win at the London Broncos was their fifth on the road.
Salford Reds could be boosted by the return from injury of Ben Gledhill and Shannan McPherson for Friday's meeting.
Return
Forward Gledhill has recovered from a fractured patella and is line to play, while McPherson has overcome a medial knee ligament problem.
"We will assess their fitness during the week and see how things are," said Salford's football director Steve Simms.
For the Bulls Brett Kearney (ankle) and Adrian Purtell (hamstring) remain sidelined by injury and John Bateman is still banned.
However, Bateman will be available to face arch-rivals Leeds after it was revealed that Friday's trip to Salford will be the final game of his three-match suspension.
Chev Walker and Tom Olbison, who were in the squad for the game against the Broncos but did not play, are retained in Potter's 19-man squad.
"It's not often, if at all, that I have been able to do that and it certainly gives us some stability," the former St Helens and Catalan Dragons coach said.
"It also sends a message out to a couple of players who are fit again that there is no easy route back into the team. You have to perform week in and week out."
Bulls squad: Addy, Ainscough, Burgess, Diskin, Elima, Gale, Hargreaves, Jeffries, Kear, Kopczak, Langley, L'Estrange, Lulia, Manuokafoa, Olbison, Platt, Pryce, Walker, Whitehead.