Destination Blackpool will be the goal for all 20 clubs when the 2012 Northern Rail Cup gets underway with the first of a series of intriguing group matches on Sunday February 12.

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The Bulldogs' Northern Rail Cup clash with Toulouse Olympique XIII on Saturday, 25 February, has been amended to a 2.00pm kick-off, rather than the previously advertised 6.00pm start.  Also, the London Skolars game on Sunday, 19 February will now kick-off at 2.30pm.

The Bulldogs concluded their pre-season warm-up campaign on Sunday with a hard-fought and impressive 18-14 victory over the Wakefield Trinity Wildcats at Mount Pleasant.  John Kear's side were magnificent in defence and overcame a 6-14 deficit midway through the second-half to pip a talented and well-organised line-up from the visitors.

 

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Bulldogs hooker Ben Fisher has agreed a two-month loan deal with Super League outfit Catalans Dragons.  The Perpignan club have been hit by injuries at hooker ahead of the opening of the new season, and the Bulldogs have agreed a loan arrangement with the Dragons to ease their injury crisis.

The Bulldogs continued their pre-season campaign on Sunday afternoon with an impressive 44-10 victory over a youthful Huddersfield Giants outfit, with Chris Buttery's hat-trick the highlight of a very competent display by John Kear's side.

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Head coach John Kear has continued his recruitment campaign for the 2012 season by swooping on his old club to sign former Wakefield Trinity Wildcats scrum-half Gareth Moore.  The 22 year-old is a familiar face at the Mount, having been a member of the 2010 Northern Rail Cup winning side before joining Wakefield last year.  Formerly with Leeds Rhinos, Halifax and York City Knights, Moore is now combining his Rugby League career with the launch of a local clothing business.  A Scottish international, Moore featured on several occasions for the Wildcats last term, and is rumoured to have turned down other offers in favour of a move back to the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs started 2012 in winning ways on Wednesday evening as they recorded a 22-10 victory over the Keighley Cougars at Cougar Park.  John Kear's men never trailed throughout, opening up a 10-0 first-half lead with an early Alex Bretherton try converted by Paul Mennell, followed up by Danny Mills' 55-yard unconverted lungbuster.  The Cougars scored either side of half-time through Haythornthwaite and a Duffy try converted by Jones to tie the scores, but two tries in the final ten minutes from Jason Walton and Kris Lythe (both converted by Lewis Palfrey) secured a decent win for the visitors.

Wednesday night's 22-10 victory at Keighley Cougars left Bulldogs head coach John Kear feeling content with his side's progress as he reflected on the events at Cougar Park and the forthcoming fixture with Huddersfield when the website caught up with him on Thursday.

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