FRANCIS Cummins said he had expected the remainder of his contract “to be paid up” following his sacking by Bradford Bulls, a court heard today.

Mr Cummins’ claim for wrongful dismissal against his former employers was backed by a trio of key figures from a previous regime who all gave evidence to support him.

Former Labour MP and Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe, former owner Omar Khan and former general manager Ryan Whitcut were questioned under oath at Leeds County Court about the intricacies of Mr Cummins’ contract.

It was heard that Mr Cummins had been appointed by the Bulls in September 2012 shortly after Mr Khan had completed a takeover of the club and brought it out of administration.

Mr Khan appointed the former Leeds assistant coach on the recommendation of Mick Potter, who Mr Cummins had served under as assistant to Bradford, on a three-year deal.

He was employed on a contract worth £50,000 per annum, thought to be the lowest for a Super League head coach at the time, and the deal included a break clause whereby either the club or Mr Cummins could part company after the first 12 months.

Mr Cummins guided the Bulls to a ninth-placed finish during his first season in charge and Mr Khan said: “I wanted to give Franny a better contract because I was impressed with his passion and how hard he was working.”

After Mr Khan and Mr Sutcliffe’s departure from the club in September 2013, a period of instability over the Bulls’ ownership led to another spell in administration and saw Marc Green taking control in March 2014.

He sacked Mr Cummins three months later with the club in deep relegation trouble and with a squad that had been left decimated by the financial crisis.

Mr Cummins said: “We had the heart ripped out of the squad, we lost the backbone of it, and were left depleted. The owner might have lost faith in me but the players never did.

“They [the club] could bring it to an end before the end of the three years but I would expect them to pay me the rest of the money.”

Mr Cummins has not since returned to full-time employment since leaving Bradford but had pursued an opening to coach in Australia which had not come off.

He said he had shown loyalty to the Bulls by turning down an opportunity to join Warrington Wolves as an assistant coach last year because “he wanted to see the job through at Bradford”.

The 38-year-old said a head coach opening had since arisen at Halifax last year but he turned it down because of fears over the club’s financial situation following previous experiences at Bradford, which included working for three months on a voluntary basis.

The father-of-three, who was supported in court by his wife Katy, spent three months working at Yorkshire Carnegie earlier this year and it was suggested by the Bulls' counsel Paul Wilson that he could join the rugby union outfit in a one-year deal worth £34,000 on June 1.

Mr Cummins said there had been talks with head coach Bryan Redpath but “nothing had been offered as yet”.

Mr Green is due to give evidence tomorrow.

The case continues.