Friday 5th March 10

Former Bradford skipper Paul Deacon was delighted to see the Bulls register back-to-back wins to relieve the pressure on his old boss Steve McNamara but he will be doing his best to halt their winning run tonight.

The former Great Britain scrum half returns to Odsal for the first time since his close-season move to Wigan Warriors and, although he is happy to be at his home-town club, he admits he still has a soft spot for his old team.

“I always backed Steve Mac,” he said. “I believe he’s a really good coach and that’s why I was pleased to see them get back to winning ways. It’s the first result I look for.

“I’m glad to see them doing well but I hope don’t do that well on Friday night.”

England captain Jamie Peacock will lead Leeds Rhinos in the absence of Kevin Sinfield against Harlequins RL at Headingley tonight as the champions look to bounce back from their Gillette World Club Challenge defeat.

However, one of their own players has revealed he has been plotting against them. Full-back Ben Jones-Bishop, 21, who is on a season-loan from the Rhinos, says he has been passing on tips to Quins coach Brian McDermott.

“I’ve been able to have an input in the game plan this week as I know certain players and what they do but, other than that, I have to treat it as any other game,” he said.

“I’m really looking forward to playing there again. After all, it is where it all started for me.

“Hopefully I’ll get a warm reception from the Headingley crowd but it’s not about me. We’re going up there to do a job and hopefully we’ll get it done.”

Catalans Dragons coach Kevin Walters is hoping his side can ‘do a Harlequins’ by turning around a 58-0 thrashing inside a week when they take on Salford City Reds in a basement duel at The Willows tonight.

Quins bounced back from their 11-try rout at Warrington Wolves in round one by winning their very next match, which was against the Dragons, but Walters says he will settle for a much-improved performance following their 58-0 hammering at Wigan.

“I’m not going looking for a win, I’m looking for good performance, which we’ve not had this season,” he said. “It’s about getting the little things right in our game.

“Salford are in the same situation so I imagine it will be a pretty desperate close battle.”

The Dragons and Reds are the only teams yet to pick up a point but Salford coach Shaun McRae believes his side is not far away after pushing Leeds and Bradford close in their last two outings.

“We have got to continue working hard and going through the right processes and have these guys believe in their ability,” he said.

“That is starting to show through now and maybe the next victory is as close as Friday. We would like to think we can back up our last two weeks and play really well this week.”

Castleford coach Terry Matterson is expecting a big performance from his experienced scrum half Brent Sherwin as the Tigers look to halt a three-match losing run at Hull FC tonight.

The Australian playmaker has become something of a talisman for Castleford but he looked distinctly rusty on his return to the side in their 24-20 home defeat by Hull Kingson Rovers last Saturday.

“It was his first game back and he was disappointed with his performance,” said Matterson. “He is a key figure for us and I’m expecting him to bounce back.”

Sherwin is likely to be up against Richard Horne in the absence of the injured Sean Long but Hull recall utility back Jordan Tansey following his suspension for a breach of club discipline.