HEAD coach Jimmy Lowes has paid tribute to Debbie Charlton following her tragic death last weekend and said: "She was a big part of the Bradford Bulls."

Lowes and his wife Julie were close friends with the popular 44-year-old, who also worked at Leeds Rhinos and spent well over a decade at Bradford in various roles.

She earned a fine reputation throughout rugby league for her work at Odsal and Lowes admits her passing has hit him hard.

He said: "Debbie was a good friend of mine and my wife Julie. I had known her since I played at Leeds, throughout all my years at Bradford and up until her untimely death last weekend.

"We're pretty gutted – a lot of people are pretty gutted – because she was a big part of the Bradford Bulls. She was also a big part of mine and Julie's life as well, so she will be missed by a lot of people.

"Debbie was a very good person, so friendly and willing to help, and you can see what she meant to people by the amount of tributes that have been paid to her this week."

A minute's silence will be held to honour Debbie's memory before tomorrow's home clash with Whitehaven and Lowes is seeking a response from his players following their opening defeat at Leigh.

"We're looking forward to our first home game and the challenge that Whitehaven will bring," he said.

"We've gone through a few things with the boys this week and ironed out one or two issues. We're ready to crack on and get playing again now. We can't wait to get our first game at Odsal underway."

Whitehaven lost their opening match 44-16 at home to Halifax last weekend and they remain under the caretaker guidance of Brett Seymour following the resignation of Steve Deakin just days before the season started.

The part-time Cumbrian outfit are advertising for a new head coach, with former Hull play-maker Seymour not keen to take the post permanently.

Lowes said: "It's a tough job being a player-coach because there is a lot to worry about and it can distract you from playing as well.

"We don't know a huge amount about Whitehaven but we'll do our homework and respect them, like we do with all opposition. But we'll focus on ourselves and hopefully turn up in a good manner."