THE blanket of snow smothering Odsal hardly suggested a bright new dawn was just around the corner.

Kinder forecasts are needed over the next week for the Bulls to host their pre-season opener against Halifax on Boxing Day.

But something within the club has changed.

There is a perceptive optimism where for so long there has been none.

“It feels like a totally different place to a year ago,” said Lee Smith after being handed the club captain’s duties by John Kear.

The press conference to unveil the veteran coach this week had featured all the usual faces. It was in the same room that Geoff Toovey’s appointment had been announced in January.

But they had reversed the seating arrangement this time to put the head table at the other end; maybe feng shui is all part of the 2018 masterplan.

There was also a coach in situ for starters rather than just a pre-written statement; Kear fielding questions with the enthusiasm of someone starting out his first job in the game rather than looking for one final coaching challenge to top off a respected career.

Some may question how announcing a 63-year-old can be viewed as a forward-thinking step. But talk to anyone round the club and they are thrilled to have such a well-known figure willing to put his head on the block.

Here’s someone who gets the tradition of the place, has wanted the job before, and is clearly not shirking the huge responsibility of dragging the club back up from the abyss.

Kear has forged a successful CV out of being the hunter; inspiring underdogs like Sheffield, Batley and Wakefield to punch above their weight.

This challenge is the polar opposite; reviving a once-great heavyweight now being frequently beaten up on the undercard.

But that’s what excites Kear and lured him from the comparative comfort of a Super League role.

You could see the eyes twinkling behind the glasses as he spoke of being the “bounty” that the likes of Hunslet, York, and, above all, Keighley are desperate to shoot down.

Unlike Toovey, whose entire rugby life had been spent in and around the NRL, Kear has been there, seen it and pretty much done it at every level of the domestic game.

There will be no hidden surprises at places that he would have never previously heard of.

He has not been afraid to rough it as a coach and the squad he inherits will respect that. Everyone goes into League One with their eyes wide open.

The Bulls are the division’s top target for a reason. Every week will be a cup final for the opposition, many of whom are still pinching themselves at sharing the same fixture list.

But they will be ready for that with the luxury of a full pre-season under their belts.

“It’s so much easier than before,” admitted Leigh Beattie, happy to settle in as Kear’s assistant after various stints in interim charge. “Obviously last Christmas wasn’t a very good time.”

The contrast between then and now is clear, although the lingering effects from the financial meltdown of the club’s previous guise remain. Next month’s scheduled court case still threatens to undermine the feelgood factor.

But on the field, the Bulls have their sense of purpose back.

The players who step out a week on Tuesday will have been working consistently on their fitness and conditioning since early November.

This may be the lowest point in playing terms in the club’s history as they prepare for a first taste of rugby at the third level.

Yet, there is a detectable spring back in the Odsal step. One that has been noticeable by its absence for a long time.

The Bulls have been coy on season-ticket numbers. Andrew Chalmers’ wish to see 3,000 sounded fanciful at the time.

But numbers have picked up since Kear settled into the hot-seat. The fans event at the stadium tomorrow is guaranteed a good showing, especially with the new coach happy to take questions from the floor.

There remains a long way to go – promotion at the first attempt is a must – but the Odsal faithful, accustomed to failure and let-downs over recent years, can sense the tide could finally be ready to turn.