Moree Bulls defeated 38-31 by Walcha Rams in round 14 of Central North rugby competition

In one of the toughest away trips in the Central North competition, the Bulls went down 38-31 to the Rams in Walcha.

It was a game that coach Damien Kelly described as close on the scoreboard but not close on the field.

"I think Walcha probably outplayed us over there," Kelly said.

"They got away to a pretty good lead. We did well to stay in it, we kept trying until the end, but we were probably second best for sure.

"It never looked like Walcha were going to lose it."

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Kelly labelled his side's poor defensive efforts as the most disappointing aspect of the loss.

"They've got a pretty quick backline and some big forwards. We did well to contain them but some of the tries they scored were pretty soft," he said.

"We were pretty disappointed we conceded some very soft tries. We sort of went to sleep on our line, when you should be most alert."

Kelly said they will keep working on their defence, a focus they've had since the "first day of preseason."

"The team with the best defensive record usually finishes first and the way we've defended in the last two or three games has not been," he said.

"We need to get it right otherwise we're going to be in a bit of trouble, but the boys are aware of it."

The loss means the Bulls now sit four points behind Walcha at the top of the ladder, and will need to win every game and the Rams to drop a game if they are any chance of finishing minor premiers.

That's easier said than done with a tough run home, first up this Saturday at home to Gunnedah before a big trip to Scone and finally their last round match at Narrabri.

Gunnedah got the better of the Bulls 31-14 back in round six, and while Moree was understrength in that game, the Red Devils still pose a serious threat this weekend.

"They've got some pretty big forwards and they do like to run the ball. It's just relentless," Kelly said.

"That's going to put our defence under pressure which is what we want.

Kelly said he is confident they can come away with the win, but it all starts with their defence.

"They've got big ball runners, their backs are strong. They very rarely kick it, they just run the ball," he said.

"It comes in waves. We've just got to be a bit patient and control what they do."

Dan Sweeney and Jono Spain are likely to miss their second game in a row this week with injury, but Kelly is confident in the replacements they've got in the backs.

While they've rarely fielded the same team two weeks in a row, the forwards have been consistent, with the team's front rowers playing a full 80 minutes over the last month.

"Their match fitness is where we want it to be at this time of the year,' Kelly said.

"Besides that, we've just got to hope we can tackle a lot better than what we did on Saturday."

The Bulls will also celebrate their Ladies Day this weekend, and with around 450 tickets sold for the event it's set to be a big day out for the ladies.

"It'll be a great day out there," Kelly said.

"The girls (Ladies Day Committee) do it all on their own. They don't need much help from the club or the club committee.

"They should be pretty proud of themselves."