BULLS captain Lee Smith believes his side showed the grit and determination needed as they continued their push for promotion with a 26-16 win over Newcastle Thunder.

Newcastle controlled much of the game’s possession, including a purple patch in the first quarter resulting in two tries.

However, the Bulls mounted a courageous comeback, showing their steel in defence while treating the record home crowd to some quality attacking rugby.

“Obviously the two points are the main goal," said Smith.

"Newcastle gave us a good game especially in the first 20 when we struggled for any field position and found ourselves in trouble.

“It’s very positive to come back from that and take the lead before half-time and I thought our defensive effort was outstanding in the second half despite all the work we had to do.

“Newcastle threw a lot at us in attack and conceding three tries is never pleasing, yet looking at the sheer amount of possession they had, we did well to recover from the early tries and halt them.

“We take real pride in our defence and work hard for each other to make it hard to score against us, the grit and determination showed and that’s something we can take from that game."

After a record points win over West Wales followed by another comfortable victory over Skolars, Smith admits Thunder's early blitz caught them cold.

He said: “We got caught in the headlights a bit I think. We’ve had some runaway games, then to come to a big challenge like Newcastle on a big occasion with a big crowd, but we managed to get through it."

Newcastle recorded their largest ever crowd of 4,137 - a figure that was helped by some Super League fans who were keen to take in a game before Magic Weekend across the city at St James' Park.

Smith was delighted to see so many attend, not just from the home club and the healthy Bulls following but also a larger than normal neutral contingent.

He said: “The crowd was fantastic. There was a number of clubs represented.

"The Magic event is about rugby league, not just your club.

“It’s great to see fans from Super League teams taking the time to come and watch a League One game and put money in the hands of Newcastle. It can only help them and the competition grow.”

This weekend the Bulls travel to Hemel Stags and, while the Stags are yet to win in the league, Smith will not be taking a win for granted and has called for concentration throughout his side.

Despite going into the game as firm favourites, the captain believes the Bulls will have to work on some aspects of their game to ensure the win.

He said: “It’s somewhere I’ve never played personally, so it’s a new challenge.

"We need that pride in our defence again, and, while they probably won’t test us as often as Newcastle, we need to be alert.

“Coming out of the Newcastle game we thought we could execute better if we stop the errors and complete better. Then we give ourselves a huge chance of winning the game.

“As always there will be talk about how many points we can score but we won’t be focusing on that. "We know how to improve and if points come as a result of that, then so be it.”