Royston getting down to work (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Royston getting down to work

1:50pm Thursday 26th November 2009 in Sport By Connor Murphy, Bradford Bulls Reporter

The Cougars got back to the hard graft this week as Barry Eaton’s men returned for the start of pre-season training.

The squad, bolstered by their five off-season recruits, were put through their paces by new strength and conditioning coach Paul Royston for the first time.

Eaton got stuck into the session himself and, although he admits to a few aching muscles in the aftermath, he was pleased with the results.

“It was Paul’s first session and it went very well. Everyone was assertive and got stuck in,” said the Keighley chief.

“The new boys joined us for the first time, and we embarrassed them a bit by making them introduce themselves to the group, but they settled in well.

“We were put through an intense weights session to get pre-season going and Paul was pleased with the results.”

The Cougars also received a significant boost after both hooker James Haythornthwaite and prop Ben Sagar agreed new deals with the club, leaving Dan Potter and Craig Brown as the only players still to finalise their futures.

“I’m really pleased because they are young lads who came through our scholarship programme and broke into the team last year,” said Eaton.

“It’s important to have a pathway from the scholarship to the first team and this provides an incentive for younger players.

“Both of them are great role models and good professionals and show what can be done if you put in the work.”

Despite bringing in five new recruits, squad-building efforts at Cougar Park are far from over.

Eaton continues to make headway in his pursuit of an Australian player with Queensland Cup experience, although he looks to have missed out on another who played in the Championship last year.

The club had been in talks with former Featherstone Rovers winger Waine Pryce, cousin of ex-Bradford Bulls duo Leon and Karl Pryce, but work commitments prevented him from signing.

“We’ve had some contact with the Australian player and are hoping to receive some video footage over the next couple of days,” said Eaton.

“I’ve had two or three good references already but still want to have a closer look.

“I’ve also been having discussions with Waine Pryce’s agent but it looks likely we are not going to take it any further.

“He’s not re-signed with Featherstone but he’s a little bit worried about job commitments and travel to Keighley and he wouldn’t be able to guarantee he’d get to training on time.”

Meanwhile, season tickets for 2010 are still available at Cougar Park and the discounted ‘early bird’ price scheme will remain in place until December 18.

For full details, contact the Cougars office on 01535-606044 or visit www.keighleycougars.info.