Francis Cummins has backed his players to provide a “backlash” to their thumping against Huddersfield when they run out at Hull KR tomorrow.

The Bulls produced arguably their worst performance of the season in last Sunday’s 42-6 Magic Weekend reverse at the hands of the Giants.

The manner of the defeat led to plenty of soul-searching among Cummins’ players in training this week but the Bulls boss is confident they will find the right response against Craig Sandercock’s team.

A victory for Bradford tomorrow would give their play-off hopes a massive boost and send them four points clear of a Rovers side still reeling from their controversial derby defeat to Hull FC at the Etihad Stadium.

Cummins said: “It’s going to be a tough one for us and it’s important because we have to beat the teams around us.

“They won’t be happy how the result went last week, so they will be fired up. It’s a tough place to go too, so it’s a massive challenge for us this week.

“One, because people are doubting us and saying we aren’t up to it, and two, because we need to have a backlash from our own performance. We need a good performance, so it’s a great opportunity for us.”

Cummins acknowledged his players performed some way below their potential against the Giants but said there was a collective responsibility for the performance – and he insisted the game was not without positives.

“We know we have let each other down – and that’s from myself, Lee St Hilaire and the staff down to the players,” said the Bulls coach.

“We just know we had a poor day. We are a bit down and we have had to look at some stuff and hear some home truths as well.

“Even though we had no grip on the game at all though, we still showed in some areas we did create things and got ourselves into good positions.

“Some players worked too hard and tried to help other players out rather than doing their own jobs.

“They weren’t being lazy but when you are playing in those hot conditions against a side like Huddersfield and defend like we did, then it’s going to be a long day. So we dust ourselves down and start again this week.”

Cummins has won plenty of admirers this season for his calm, measured approach and he insisted there had been no “hairdryer” treatment for his men.

“They are a very honest bunch and it’s not hairdryers every week – that’s not how I work,” he said.

“They know what they did and there’s no arguing about anything. I could read out missed tackles but they know they missed them. “No-one has disagreed with what has been said.”

Rovers have struggled for consistency this season but Cummins is wary of the threat they pose and has pinpointed Aussie scrum half Michael Dobson as their key threat.

The Bulls chief has urged his players to be quickest out of the blocks and said: “We need to start well and that’s how it is in most games.

“We need to get back on the horse and they will be trying to get one over us because of what happened with the video ref last week against Hull. They will be fired up because of that and that’s all part of it.

“We seem to get the backlash every week, whether it’s from a poor performance or whether, in their case, it’s a perceived injustice with something that was taken out of their hands.

“But that’s fine because we just need to go and play our own game, because if we do and play well, then I am confident we will win the game.”