Kurt Haggerty outlines what will make or break Bradford Bulls' season after full-time switch

Their return to Super League closed a bruising chapter spent fighting their way back from the lower leagues.

But those celebrations soon gave way to the challenge of building a Super League-ready squad against the clock while transitioning from part-time to full-time rugby.

Kurt Haggerty is learning on the go as much as the club after landing his first head coaching role with the revitalised Bulls.

With Bradford's long-awaited return now just five weeks away, he has been encouraged by the steps taken over the winter months.

"We've had some teething problems, for sure," said Haggerty. "We've transitioned from part-time to full-time and straight into Super League.

"But the board and (chief executive) Jason Hirst have been first class in the way they've responded to the things we've needed.

"The things we've needed and the teething problems we've had have been fixed really quickly."

Bradford have made as many as 16 new signings for their second coming in Super League, blending youth, experience and players who know Odsal inside out from previous spells.

Even with a squad overhauled in record time, Haggerty has managed to knit the newcomers, returnees and existing players into a cohesive unit.

"I thought it would be a lot more difficult than it's been," he said.

"The group have come together really, really well. We started pre-season pretty early and the group has gelled really quickly. That's off the field, too.

"It's about spending as much time as we can together. We've put a lot of work in through presentations, speaking about the systems and have played a lot of opposed games on a Saturday morning against other clubs, which have really helped us.

"I hope all that shows in the first few rounds of Super League."

This weekend, the Bulls step up their preparations for next month's big kick-off with friendlies against Dewsbury Rams and Doncaster, where Haggerty will field an experienced team.

Bradford have one more trial game at Leeds Rhinos later this month, by which time the Bulls boss hopes to see the traits instilled during pre-season.

"We just need to test our systems under fatigue and take some confidence from those games going into round one," added Haggerty.

"It's just the repetition of doing everything under fatigue at game pace.

"We're ready to start playing games. The level and intensity of training has been a real pleasant surprise for me.

"For the boys who have never played Super League or the players who are stepping back into Super League having been out of it for a long time, the game is probably just as physical in the Championship but you have to get used to the speed of the game at the higher level and be competitive for the full game. A lot of the matches will go down to the last 15 minutes.

"You've got to be fit and competent at competing in a cycle. That will be the make-or-break for every team."

For Haggerty, the demands are greater than ever as he gets to grips with the all-encompassing responsibilities of a head coach.

But the 37-year-old is having more trouble with the big freeze than his workload.

"The only thing keeping me awake at the moment is the cold," said the St Helens native with a smile. "It's actually colder in Lancashire than it is in Yorkshire, which I've never said before.

"I'm pretty comfortable and confident that we're going to go and compete every week."