Bulls forward James Donaldson is hoping to get the green light to face Warrington on Sunday.

The Cumbrian back-rower, who enjoyed an outstanding start to the season, picked up an ankle injury during the home defeat to Leeds a fortnight ago.

He subsequently missed the Easter Monday loss and Challenge Cup win over Catalan but could return to action this weekend.

Donaldson, 22, said: “In general it feels fine but I tried running on it earlier in the week and it was no good.

“I’ll try again on Friday or Saturday and see how it has progressed and then take it from there.

“It’s been frustrating because I was just starting to get back playing regular football.

“I was just glad it wasn’t anything too serious; that was a relief.

“I’ve been carrying a few bumps and bruises this season so a week off won’t have done me any harm.

“But I’m looking forward to hopefully getting back out there this weekend.”

Donaldson’s injury against the Rhinos was a result of a collision with Kallum Watkins.

“My foot was just laid out, Kallum fell on it and I twisted my ankle,” he explained.

“It became swollen and I had the protective boot on for a week as a precaution.

“It feels all right until I try and run but hopefully it will be back to normal by the weekend.

“It was a fantastic performance by the lads against Catalan and the support from the fans was the best it has been for a long time.”

Donaldson is hoping to cross swords with Ben Evans, who enjoyed a successful loan spell with the Bulls last season.

He said: “Ben did great for us. He’s a big lad and looks like he’s trimmed down a bit since he was here.

“He’s a good player and I look forward to playing against him. His loan spell here really helped him and allowed him to show what he could do.”

Bulls head coach Francis Cummins added: “We were able to give Ben the first-team experience he needed and now this season he has played every game for Warrington. That’s really pleasing.”

Evans was linked with a return to Bradford on loan earlier this season but has barely missed a game for Warrington.

Cummins said: “Ben has established himself at Warrington, if not as a starter then he’s certainly in their top 17.”