BULLS have suffered a huge blow this evening, after it was confirmed that star full-back Brandon Pickersgill has departed the club to join their Championship rivals Featherstone.

He scored nine tries in 19 appearances last season, with sensational efforts at home to Halifax and Fev the pick of those.

A constant menace to opposition defences, Bulls may even have gone further in the play-offs had Pickersgill not suffered a bad back injury in the late-season defeat to Toulouse.

That forced him to miss the final two league games of the campaign, defeats to Widnes and Whitehaven, as well as the quarter-final loss to Batley.

Pickersgill is Bradford through and through, which makes his departure even harder to swallow.

Born in the city, the full-back is a product of the much-vaunted Bulls academy, and broke into the first team back in 2017.

But he really started to make a name for himself the following year when Bulls dropped down to League 1, scoring 11 tries in 24 appearances as the team secured an immediate return to the second tier.

He helped himself to nine tries in 2019, and three in the Covid-shortened campaign last year.

But a new challenge awaits him now, in the form of Million Pound Game finalists Featherstone.

Speaking to their club website after his signing was confirmed, Pickersgill said: “I’m really excited to be joining a great club.

“I can’t wait to get started and to contribute towards us having a top season next year.”

The departure of Pickersgill means Elliot Kear is probably favourite to be the regular starting full-back at Bulls next term.