The devastating news that strong prop Eribe Doro will miss the Bradford Bulls’ next three Betfred Championship games has dealt a severe blow to the team.
In Sunday’s 36-24 victory against Barrow at home, Doro was sent off for headbutting Andrew Bulman after the Raiders player grabbed him in the face.
Bradford’s visitors scored a try almost immediately after they lost a man, but the home team held strong to secure a crucial sixth league victory of the year.
After ten games, that retained them in sixth place in the standings, just three points behind Widnes, who are currently in second place.
Without Doro, meanwhile, it will be difficult to build on this strong start. As recently as last month, Bulls head coach Eamon O’Carroll stated that the prop was “the best player in the Championship at the moment.”
Due to Wakefield and Sheffield’s 1895 Cup final at Wembley, Bradford is not playing this weekend. Therefore, Doro’s suspension will start right away and last until their next game.
This implies that the 23-year-old will miss the Bulls’ home game against Doncaster, which will take place in between those two away games, as well as the league games at Whitehaven and Dewsbury.
The next time Doro plays for the Bulls will be the first weekend of July, when they travel to Toulouse for a challenging league match.
In addition to his three-game suspension, Doro has been fined £125 for the headbutt incident.
After an ill-advised high tackle on him, teammate Zac Fulton was sin-binned later in the Barrow match for allegedly punching, but he has not been punished further.
