By Adam Sheldon

Bond captain Tyler Campbell says the Bull Sharks are ready to “go to war” with 2025 grand final opponents Brothers this weekend, with the skipper bracing for a fired-up response from last year’s beaten finalists.

While Bond claimed a dramatic two-point win in last year’s decider – securing the club’s first ever Hospital Cup premiership – the Bull Sharks have not beaten Brothers at Crosby Park since 2019.

Speaking to Rugby News, Campbell said last weekend’s one-point loss to GPS – their first of the season after opening with two wins – had served as a timely “reality check” ahead of the grand final rematch.

“Regardless of last week’s result, it’s a big occasion obviously being a grand final rematch. But we haven’t been satisfied with the performances we’ve put out there so far,” Bond’s captain said.

“It was a bit of a reality check on the weekend that we needed to put some work in.

“It’s been good energy so far at training this week. Now it’s just about making sure we go into a big match against Brothers, put our best foot forward and embrace the challenge in front of us.”

Campbell, 29, said he was expecting to face a strong Brothers outfit who are two from two in 2026, adding the hosts would be looking to get revenge on Bond, who ended their push for a premiership three-peat.

“You never want to lose a grand final, so I think that’ll be at the back of their mind and they will probably be thinking about revenge a little bit,” he said.

“But at the same time, they’re a classy outfit. They treat every game the same and want to win every week – that’s why they’ve been so successful.”

Despite the challenge, Campbell – one of the competition’s premier inside centres and a former member of the Chiefs extended Super Rugby squad – said his side was ready to “go to war” with one of the competition’s benchmark teams.

“I think going into every game, I believe our team can win. It’s just making sure we show up and do the right stuff for 80 minutes,” he said.

“It’s going to be an 80-minute grind. You look at Brothers’ first two games, they’ve come from behind late to win, so we’ve got to be ready for that and embrace the whole atmosphere that comes with it.

“You’ve got to be ready to go to war for 80 minutes.”

Asked where the match would be decided, Campbell pointed to the set piece and the importance of capitalising on limited opportunities.

“I think we’ve got to put pressure on their set piece – they’ve been quite dominant there the first couple of weeks,” he said.

“And we’ve just got to take our opportunities when they come. We probably won’t get as many as we have the last few weeks, so we need to capitalise on errors or mistakes they make defensively and turn that into points.”

He added:

“My message to the boys ahead of this game is about getting back to the footy that we’re known for, that we know we can play, and making sure we’re winning the physical battles that allow us to do that.”

Away from the weekend’s clash, Campbell praised the impact of new recruit Kohan Herbert, with the flanker quickly settling into the group.

“His older brother was my best mate growing up that we lost to cancer in 2019, so for us it’s a bit of a reunion being able to play together,” Campbell said.

“He’s fitted in perfectly. He’s got a bit of prior connection with a lot of the boys through academies and being a Gold Coast lad.

“He brings a lot of energy and he’s a quality footballer. He’s really professional with his craft and he’s already had an impact around the breakdown for us. I think we’re learning to follow him as we gel more as a team.”