Leeds Rhinos 12, Bradford Bulls 18

The Bulls breathed life into their ailing Super League campaign with a first win at Headingley in almost four years.

Derby victory is sweet at the best of times but this one in particular was just the elixir Bradford needed after defeat to Hull had put their season on its deathbed.

Not since Lesley Vainikolo’s last game in red, amber and black had they won on their arch-rivals’ home patch, the legendary Kiwi winger scoring in a 38-14 triumph on June 29 back in 2007.

And the ‘Volcano’ would have been proud of the efforts that culminated in a compatriot scoring the second-half points that sealed victory.

Patrick Ah Van kicked the four penalties that allowed his side to edge a nervy encounter that had been finely poised at 12-10 going into the break.

Despite the drama that followed, the atmosphere prior to kick-off was hardly befitting a West Yorkshire derby.

In years gone by, Super League stopped to watch this fixture. This time, everybody’s attention seemed focused on the opposite side of the Pennines, where Warrington and St Helens were simultaneously locking horns.

But the players did not need reminding of the importance of the occasion – particularly Bradford, who started at a pace that had been sorely lacking from their game throughout the defeat to Hull.

An offload from Andy Lynch caught Leeds unaware and Marc Herbert quickly spun a long pass wide to Elliott Whitehead.

Drawing his man, the young centre released Gareth Raynor on the overlap but the Bulls eventually ran out of room as the Rhinos got plenty of bodies back to cover.

Leeds led the early penalty count, twice benefiting from the shrill of Steve Ganson’s whistle, yet seemed to lack the necessary composure to exert any kind of meaningful pressure.

Similarly, Herbert’s second 40-20 kick in as many games put Bradford on the front foot and the hosts were forced to defend repeat sets when Kevin Sinfield was forced back over his own try-line.

But Ian Sibbit fumbled on the very next play to hand possession back again.

When the deadlock finally was broken, typically Leeds were responsible.

Matt Diskin conceded ball after throwing a forward pass inside his own half and an overlap eventually built on the left, Rob Burrow starting the move that saw Ryan Hall score in the corner. Sinfield comfortably kicked the conversion.

If that had left the Bulls cursing their fortune, Lady Luck soon delivered a most welcome gift.

Sinfield and Hall were left tied up in knots when Ben Jeffries put a well-judged crossfield kick into the in-goal area and Olivier Elima threw himself at the bobbling ball.

The Frenchman did not seem to get a meaningful-enough hand on it but the try was awarded anyway, although Ah Van infuriatingly missed the conversion.

Handed such a surprising route back into the game, you would have expected the Bulls to be grateful. Instead, they were simply wasteful.

Fielding a crossfield bomb from Sinfield, Jason Crookes allowed himself to be dragged over his own try-line by Carl Ablett and, if that was not bad enough, allowed the ball to squirm out of his grasp.

Jamie Jones-Buchanan gratefully accepted a chance to extend his side’s lead, Sinfield adding the extras.

But Bradford hit back six minutes before the interval, once again punishing Leeds’ right edge through precision work with the boot.

This time, Herbert supplied a pinpoint dink and Whitehead cleverly flicked the ball back for Elima to score his second try, Ah Van converting.

Forced to weather a minor storm either side of the interval, the Bulls put in some stellar defensive work, although long spells of try-line defence will have done nothing for Mick Potter’s blood pressure.

Still, they came out of it fighting and almost scored when Sibbit sliced through the defence off the dump-off pass from Herbert.

The Rhinos were penalised for offside and Ah Van kicked the two points but it seemed strange that Bradford did not opt to exert more pressure on their vulnerable opponents.

If the game had not quite come to life throughout the opening 50 minutes, Diskin soon injected fire into proceedings.

The former Rhinos hooker went high and hard on Ablett, drawing blood from the face of his former team-mate and sparking a melee involving the majority of the players on the pitch.

Diskin was put on report but the home fans felt he was lucky to escape a yellow card, making their disapproval crystal clear.

Spurred on by that scuffle, the hosts came within a hair’s breadth of their third try, Jamie Peacock halted on a rampaging run.

To make matters worse, Jeffries was knocked out cold while throwing his body in Peacock’s path, forcing a rapid reshuffle that saw Brett Kearney chip in at first receiver, second receiver and even at dummy half.

But Bradford remained unshaken. In fact, they put together a few solid sets that drew errors from the Rhinos.

Ganson penalised them twice in quick succession, Ah Van stepping up to nail a penalty from 35 metres – and then twice more, giving the Kiwi a second successful shot at goal.

Those four points should have been supplemented by a further two but Ah Van hit the post for a second time with a straightforward kick at goal, a setback that was made especially disappointing by the fact that Bradford had survived two drop-outs to set up their chance.

Knowing the lead was far from comfortable, Leeds made a spirited charge in the final five minutes, planting jitters deep in the pit of every stomach on the West Terrace.

But when Danny Buderus knocked on deep in opposition territory, it was clear the writing was on the wall.

Frustrated and desperate, the Rhinos conceded a flurry of penalties and Ah Van happily stepped up to knock another over in the final minute.

The final whistle sparked jubilation among the travelling fans and aggression among the two sets of players, tempers once more threatening to spill over.

Ultimately though, the overruling feeling was one of satisfaction. Could this be the start of a play-off push?

Attendance: 18,095