Matthew Elliott had described his side as vulnerable in the build-up to the game but if that's the case you can only fear for the opposition when they are in the mood.

Their fourth game in 14 days, including a physically and mentally exhausting cup final, had left the Bulls coach genuinely fearing some fall-out in what is traditionally one of their toughest games of the season.

But 11 tries and some breathtaking rugby put paid to that theory and the Blue Sox out to dry.

Even allowing for a pretty inept effort from their opponents it was possibly the Bulls most complete 80 minutes of the season - an intoxicating mixture of thunderous defence and high speed attack.

Halifax captain Greg Florimo immediately dubbed them the best team in Super League as the Challenge Cup winners moved above Wigan into second place in the table, just a point behind St Helens and with a game in hand, after piling up their biggest score of the season.

"We've copped a touch-up (heavy defeat) from all three top sides and it's a split hair between St Helens and Bradford, with Bradford probably ahead at the moment," said the former Kangaroo tourist.

"They are a very confident side and they have the ability to develop second-phase ball.

"They were way too strong for us. We were totally outplayed but we didn't do ourselves any favours. We were not too smart when we had the ball and we didn't tackle."

But it's doubtful whether any side could have lived with the Bulls in this mood.

And it said much for the appetite for success across the squad that it was perhaps the unluckiest Murrayfield absen-

tee who led the way.

Justin Brooker suffered the biggest disappointment of his career when he became the odd-man out for the cup final but the unassuming Aussie let his performance on the field do the talking for him last night.

The Blue Sox obviously saw him as a potential weak link by bombarding him with an early aerial assault but he diffused them all superbly before going on his own personal revenge mission.

First he swept off his wing to finish off a dazzling diagonal run and reverse pass from Henry Paul and after the break fizzed through from acting half-back to catch the Halifax defence napping.

But he saved his best until last with a great hand-off and bustling finish from near hal-way after being brilliantly set up by Robbie Paul after the skipper had collected a kick ten metres from his own line.

It took Brooker's tally to an impressive nine in just seven games and he even had time to prevent Halifax gaining a late consolation try with a brilliant effort to hold Florimo on his back during a late stint at full back.

An obvious man of the match choice you might think but that would have been an injustice on Stuart Fielden and it was fitting they should share the honour.

Fielden makes no secret of his desire to do especially well against his hometown club and this time he served up his best display of the season by some distance.

Halifax simply had no answer to his awesome running and with Brian McDermott forced to limp out of the action after half-an-hour he relished the opportunity for more game time.

"Our recent games have been five carries from Brian and a kick," joked Fielden. "I know he won't be happy to have come off so soon but he's been a pivotal part of our forward pack and it's nice for the youngsters to be able to take a share of the workload."

The Hebden Bridge-based prop rounded his night off perfectly with his customary try against the club who let him slip through the net and he milked it for all it was worth on the final hooter by staying on the field long enough to almost miss the bus to Headingley for the next derby on Friday.

Hudson Smith and Paul Anderson were also in devastating running form while the Paul brothers took advantage of the acres of space the pack created to stamp their class all over the proceedings.

Henry set the ball rolling after a lovely link with Scott Naylor and the powerhouse centre turned try scorer himself late on with two fine finishes after a creative hand from first Brad Mackay and then Jamie Peacock.

Full-back Stuart Spruce also grabbed an excellent brace showing a nice turn of speed on both occasions to round off great approach work from Brooker and Smith.

It was the prefect way to enter their most testing spell of the season. Leeds, Warrington, St Helens and Wigan are lining up to try and shoot them down but they'd all be well advised to give the video of this one a miss!

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.