Josh Charnley crossed the whitewash for his first Super League try as a teenager representing Wigan back in 2010
Published 14 June 2026
Betfred Super League
Bradford (0) 12
Tries: Atkin, Aekins Goals: Dean 2
Leigh (14) 38
Tries: Charnley 3, Senior, Hodgson, Brogan Goals: Cook 7
Josh Charnley etched his name into the history books by breaking the Super League all-time try-scoring record, steering the Leigh Leopards to a win over the Bradford Bulls.
The 34-year-old secured a hat-trick at Odsal, elevating his tally to 272 tries, moving one ahead of Leeds Rhinos winger Ryan Hall.
Charnley, who exited the field with a limp 15 minutes from full-time, now boasts 16 tries this season, trailing only the Rhinos' Maika Sivo.
He paved the way for the Leopards to claim their sixth victory in seven outings, with Innes Senior, Bailey Hodgson, and Louis Brogan also touching down to seal a dominant performance.
Despite the win, Leigh remain in seventh place, but they narrowed the gap to two points behind a faltering St Helens side, who hold the final play-off berth.
Bradford could only muster tries from Chris Atkin and Caleb Aekins in a disappointing outing, with the loss keeping them in 10th place at the midway point of the season.
The return fixture between these two teams next year is set to take place in Las Vegas on 27 February at Allegiant Stadium, home of NFL franchise the Las Vegas Raiders, marking the first match between sides from either side of the Pennines to be held in the United States.
However, this encounter was illuminated by vintage finishing from Charnley, whose tries have come for Wigan Warriors, Warrington Wolves, and now Leigh since his debut as a teenager in 2010.
An Adam Cook penalty goal got the scoring underway, but the Australian stand-off then delivered an inch-perfect kick that bounced up ideally for Charnley to run onto, bringing him within one try of Hall's record.
Bradford enjoyed plenty of possession in the opposition half, but they lacked anyone as ruthless as Charnley, and he demonstrated why with his second try.
Charnley collected a pass on the right touchline, stepped inside past two defenders, and dived over before a third could close him down, drawing level with the benchmark.
The Bulls opened the second-half scoring as scrum-half Atkin broke through the line and then shrugged off Charnley's attempted tackle to slide over.
However, the Leopards winger had the final say as Cook's pass gave him the chance to complete his hat-trick for Super League try number 272.
A powerful burst through the defence from full-back Aekins earned the Bulls their second try, but straightforward scores from Hodgson and Brogan added shine to the margin of victory.
The only downside was the sight of Charnley leaving the field injured before the final whistle, with Leigh hopeful that the evergreen winger will be able to continue adding to his record tally.
Bradford Bulls head coach Kurt Heggarty told BBC Radio Leeds:
"There are no complaints. I thought Leigh were really good. They taught us a good lesson in completing high and turning the ball over in the right areas.
The tough part for me is we made six line breaks and dropped four balls on the back of it. It shows we can create the opportunities, it's executing those big moments and we didn't do that today.
"When you make so many breaks, it's frustrating when you don't score them. Most teams probably don't make six line breaks in two games and we did it in one game.
"But they've completed at 92% and we've completed at 62% and you're never going to win games in Super League doing that."
Leigh Leopards head coach Adrian Lam told BBC Radio Manchester:
"Very tough, very methodical, a little bit boring at times, but that's the way you've got to play here.
"We had a really simple game plan and we've scored around 40 points, so I'm really pleased for the players.
"It was different to what we're used to with the style we play but they picked it up really well. We scrambled well defensively and there were some really positive signs."
Bradford: Aekins; Armitage, Chamberlain, Blake, Ryan; Dean, Atkin; Sutton, Ackers, Doro, Fulton, Russell, Mellor.
Interchanges: Gardiner, Scurr, Steinwede, Hooley.
Leigh: Armstrong; Senior, Hodgson, Hughes, Charnley; Cook, Lam; Ofahengaue, Ipape, Mulhern, Halton, Alick-Wiencke, Liu.
Interchanges: Brogan, Pene, O'Brien, Horne.
Referee: Jack Smith.
Related topics
Rugby League
Leigh Leopards