Ronan Michael to join Bradford Bulls upon York Knights exit

The 24-year-old has penned a two-year deal at Odsal, reuniting him with Eamon O'Carroll, whom he first worked with as a teenager.

Michael first joined the Knights on loan from Huddersfield Giants in 2022 before going on to make his stay permanent.

He has become a fan favourite at York, for whom he has scored five times across 63 appearances, and has perhaps been playing some of the best rugby of his career under head coach Mark Applegarth.

The Irish prop is no stranger to Odsal and played a large role in orchestrating the Knights' ill-fated comeback - including a surging run through the Bulls' defence to set up Sam Cook - last month.

Michael's move back to West Yorkshire will also reunite him with Irish international Joe Keyes and Mitch Souter.

On penning a deal with the Bulls, he enthused: “I am really looking forward to it.

“It’s a really good opportunity for me and my career to play under Eamon, who I’ve known since the very early days when I was 18 and he was an assistant coach with Ireland.

“Eamon was a big factor in my decision having known him a long time obviously, but Bradford is an exciting club going in an exciting direction and I want to be a part of that.

“Mitch and I lived together at his house with his family when I was in Australia with Canberra Under-20s.

“He is a really good mate of mine and I am looking forward to linking back up with him, he was in my ear telling me to come."

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The Irishman also hopes that the move will allow him to learn more about his craft.

He explained: “I just want to come in, have a good pre-season, do what I do best and learn a lot as well, as there are a lot of senior blokes at Bradford.

“There are more coming in too, so I can learn a bit from them all.

“The combination of the young and older lads is exciting and being able to pick their brains and learn off them is the best thing for me and my development.

“I am just looking forward to ripping in with the lads, getting a good pre-season under my belt and kicking on from there.

“Odsal is a tough place to go as a visiting player because of the supporters, so I am really looking forward to having them on my side for a change.

“The fans at Bradford are a massive influence on the game, with them being as loud as they come, so I am really looking forward to that.”

Michael is hoping to develop further at Odsal. (Image: Craig Hawkhead Photography)

O’Carroll is excited to see the forward develop at Bulls, saying: “I am really pleased to get Ronan in.

“He is a great lad who has worked extremely hard to get to where he is now.

“I first crossed paths with him when I retired in 2017 and spent some time with the Ireland camp where he was up and coming and had a really good work ethic, with a desperation to achieve things.

“He took himself out of his comfort zone to further develop and even went to Australia where he ended up living with Mitch and his family.

“I am really happy for him and I am happy for us, as I know his quality.

“He has aspirations to further develop as well, so he will be a huge boost for us.

“I have watched him closely throughout the year, I obviously know of him having followed his journey but he’s impressed and the exciting thing is he wants to get better, he can get better and I feel he is coming to the right place to do so."