BULLS head coach John Kear felt Halifax were a little lucky to beat Bulls 24-21 in a thriller, but nevertheless lauded what he felt were two top play-off teams going at it hammer and tongs.

The winning try from James Saltonstall looked as if it might have seen the final pass go forward, but Kear was more bothered by Liam Harris’ equalising effort.

He said: “I thought the chase of the kick try down their right was offside, but that’s just with the naked eye, I’ll have to look at the video.”

It was a shame as Bulls defended their hearts out in the second half, even after an almighty reshuffle follow Reece Hamlett’s departure from the wing for a head injury assessment.

Kear said: “That’s what you get when you have a player like Aaron Murphy. He can play wing, centre, second row, middle unit, wherever you want.

“We shoved him out there, Ross Oakes came round on to the right, Adam Rooks went into the middle.

“It was a reshuffle but the players know their job and they’re smart. I think that was demonstrated in that defensive effort when we were all at sea positionally.”

On the game as a whole, Kear said: “It was a cruel ending and I’m disappointed as I thought we’d done enough to get something.

“But I thought it was a great game of rugby league and you have to applaud both sides for that.

“I was immensely proud of how our lads played today, we cobbled a team together with 19 fit players basically.

“They showed great spirit and resilience, but I think it came down to three or four lapses of concentration in the end.

“It was a very quick and intense game, and a proper play-off standard one. I think everybody who’s attended can feel royally entertained.”

There were no new injuries to report from the game, though Kear confirmed he expects Dan Fleming to be out for around three weeks with a knee injury.