BWhcSL: Round 5 Preview

All eight teams return to the Betfred Wheelchair Super League this weekend as the fight for the top of the table continues on Saturday (20 June).

Opening the round are Bradford Bulls who host Hull FC for the first time in the competition having met in a pre-season friendly as part of their preparation for joining the top flight.

“It’s been a big jump, it’s a jump we expected especially with such a young team it was always going to be a big step up, but our young team got us through the championship last year with only one defeat in the main season and that same team is now in the Super League,” said Bulls’ Team Captain, Richard Wright.

“We’re learning every week just what we need to do and we’re progressing every week.”

Having built on the lessons learned in their pre-season, Wright is confident his side have put the work in to put on a strong display against FC on Saturday:

“This weekend is one of the games we identified where we can probably show the best of us and compete in the best way we can.

“We played Hull in a pre-season friendly just to gauge where we were at that point. We’d like to think we’ve improved massively since then so this could be a good measure as to how much we have improved.

“We’re hoping to compete for the full 80 minutes against a team that have been in Super League for quite a while.”

It’s a real family affair at Bradford for Wright as he plays alongside son, Nathaniel and daughter, Isabel:

“It’s great, I mean I’m 46, I never expected to be playing at this level of any sport to be honest, but playing alongside my son and daughter is very special for me. Especially with Isabel, she’s one of the few female players in Super League playing at the top level and is fully deserving of her place - at only 17 it’s massive.

“Nat hit the scene pretty early on in his career, he was transferred to Halifax in his first ever season in Wheelchair Rugby League and he’s already experienced Super League and a Grand Final and a Challenge Cup Final but he’s loving life back with Bradford.

"It’s great to play alongside both of them, there’s not many sports where you get to do that”

Also facing off this weekend are London Roosters and Sheffield Eagles.

The Eagles have picked up a couple of wins already this season after struggling to get off the mark in 2025.

This weekend they’ll be hoping to continue on their positive trajectory and push themselves in what will be another fierce game, taking on last year’s finalists, the Roosters.

Elsewhere, Leeds Rhinos host Halifax Panthers as they face off in their final battle before the Betfred Wheelchair Challenge Cup Final on Saturday 25 July.

The match will be their last opportunity to put their preparations to the test before battling for the season’s first major trophy.

The Final game of the weekend sees Wigan Warriors head North to take on Edinburgh Giants.

The Giants are still fighting hard to get their first win of the season under their belt after a number of tense match ups.

With the season still young, Saturday will be another opportunity for them to prove themselves and continue building confidence as they search for that first victory.

Betfred Wheelchair Super League Round 5 Fixtures:

Saturday 20 June

Bradford Bulls v Hull FC (KO 1:30pm)

London Roosters v Sheffield Eagles (KO 2pm)

Leeds Rhinos v Halifax Panthers (KO 2:30pm)

Edinburgh Giants v Wigan Warriors (KO 2:30pm)

A full list of fixtures for the Betfred Wheelchair Super League can be found here.