Bradford’s newest addition is once again falling in love with rugby league after a chaotic Salford saga.
LOGHAN Lewis is rediscovering his passion as Bradford Bulls return to the big time. After a 12-year journey that saw the once-dominant club collapse, reform, and claw its way back from the bottom, the Bulls are back in Super League.
Expansion to 14 teams placed Bradford alongside Toulouse and York, replacing Salford after the Red Devils went into liquidation amid promises, unpaid wages, and mounting debts. Amid the upheaval, Lewis, an Australian prop, was left in limbo, far from home and unsure about the future. Now free of that nightmare, he can focus on the game he loves, and the spark is back.
“It took the love out of the game,” Lewis admitted. “Knowing what was happening, every day was a struggle to get to training. We started with a tight-knit group, but as players moved on, staying positive became harder. Being away from Australia and with no nearby family or friends to lean on made the uncertainty even tougher, especially late in the season.”
“We still had games each week to prepare for, so I focused on my teammates and how we could perform that week. Some sessions brought us together only on game day, but the upside was meeting so many great people and making lasting friends from that year. You take the positives from tough times.”
Moving to Bradford—an organization ready for Super League—has been a major lift, he says. “You can see how big Bradford was in the early 2000s; you can feel that history everywhere during training and around the stadium.”
Now 23, Lewis is rejoining familiar faces at Bradford, with coach Kurt Haggerty and teammates Ethan Ryan, Joe Mellor, Jayden Nikorima, Esan Marsters, plus loanees Rowan Milnes and Dan Russell also joining from Salford.
Super League life resumes at Hull FC today, and Lewis hopes to deliver a performance that surpasses the one he briefly managed to show his watchful fan last year—his dad. He once traveled halfway around the world to see him return from a long injury only for him to be knocked out in his first challenge of the season.
Lewis reflected: “He tried to hide it, but I could tell he cared. I wished he’d seen me play more than 30 seconds, but he’ll get his chance this year. I hope I can give him a few more minutes!”
“Under Kurt, training is very detailed, very one-on-one, and there’s no ambiguity. You know what he wants, and he makes sure of it.”
