ALL eyes were on the Cedar Court Hotel in Bradford on Thursday night as the Bradford Bulls hosted their end-of-season Players’ Awards Evening.
It was a fantastic occasion, celebrating the hard work and dedication shown by everyone at the club — from players and staff to the many volunteers — throughout the 2025 campaign.
Supporters, sponsors and club representatives gathered to reflect on a memorable year, recognising the individual and collective efforts that have shaped the Bulls’ season both on and off the field.
The evening featured a series of awards honouring standout performances, commitment and contribution across all areas of the club.
And with plenty of laughter, emotion and appreciation in the room, it proved to be a fitting finale to the 2025 season — and a reminder of the strong community spirit at the heart of the Bradford Bulls.
Furthermore, it was a chance for everyone to show their appreciation for the departing trio of Brian Noble, Michael Lawrence and Chris Hill, with the former two announcing their retirements in recent weeks.
All three individuals were handed framed shirts to commemorate them for their fantastic careers.
The evening kicked off with both the women’s and men’s teams entering the dining suite to a rapturous round of applause, setting the tone for the rest of the night.
As for the men’s segment, which arrived towards the end of the evening, fellow sports reporter Nathan Atkinson and I headed for the stage to hand Luke Hooley the T&A Player of the Year award after his impressive campaign at full-back.
Hooley also collected the Fans’ Player of the Year award.
Powerhouse Ebon Scurr was expectedly crowned as Hitman of the Year, while Australian Zac Fulton was handed Coach’s Player of the Year by Noble, who he was full of admiration for on stage when giving his winning speech.
Jayden Okunbor, who scored 21 tries for Bradford last season, took home the Players’ Player of the Year award, and finally, Guy Armitage won Try of the Season for his outstanding effort away at Oldham – a game which Bulls won 42-12.
Away from the men's awards, segment one of the evening belonged to the Academy, Reserves and Scholars.
Scholarship Coach's Player of the Year went to Riley Gelder, while Academy Coach's Player of the Year was awarded to Harvey Duckworth and Lewis Hagan collected the Reserves Coach's Player of the Year.
Riley Gelder also picked up the Scholarship Players’ Player of the Year award, before Cameron Bate was invited to the stage to take home the Academy Players’ Player award, while the Reserves Players’ Player of the Year went to Lewis Hagan.
The winner of the Women’s Players’ Player of the Year was awarded to Paigan Taylor, who also won Women’s Try of the Season for her last-gasp effort against Castleford Tigers.
Tamzin Butterfield was the winner of the Women’s Coach’s Player of the Year.
The men’s awards were interspersed with two special inductions into the Bulls’ Hall of Fame, while the club’s hard-working volunteers — the bedrock of the organisation — were invited on stage for a well-deserved moment of appreciation.
The two inductees in question were none other than Bradford Northern star Ernest Ward and Paul Deacon.
Ward, who is no longer with us (1987), made his debut for Bradford Northern in 1936 against Swinton, making just shy of 400 appearances playing a key role in the club’s Challenge Cup successes across the 1940s.
Deacon, known as the ‘Baby Faced Assassin’, made 326 appearances for the Bulls across the late 90s and 2000s, playing a key role in the club’s all conquering sides under Brian Noble.
He remains Bradford’s highest ever points scorer to this day.
All in all, it was a wonderful evening at Cedar Court, who were brilliant hosts for a night of joy and celebration of everything that makes the Bradford Bulls and their community so special.
