ADRIAN Purtell has signed a new one-year deal with the Bulls and revealed Jimmy Lowes asked him to stay just two days after he was appointed.

The Australian centre is the latest high-profile player to agree fresh terms with the club following their relegation and has set his sights on an immediate return to Super League.

Purtell, 29, has shown remarkable fortitude to rebuild his career after suffering a heart attack during his debut season at Odsal in May 2012.

He made his comeback last year and is the only Bulls player to have reached double figures in the try-scoring charts this season, touching down ten times in 21 Super League appearances before a foot injury ended his season prematurely.

Signed from Penrith Panthers ahead of the 2012 campaign, Purtell told the T&A: “I’m over the moon to be staying here.

“Even with the position we find ourselves as a club, this gives me the opportunity to help Bradford get back where they should be and that’s in Super League.

“It’s a massive goal for us and there is going to have to be a lot of hard work put in to achieve that.

“But I think with the squad we have in place, and the fanbase we have behind us, we’re going to be able to give it a really good crack.”

Purtell’s work-rate, ability to break the opponents’ line and cross the whitewash were qualities that came to Lowes’ attention when he was an assistant coach at Leeds Rhinos.

Purtell explained: “I spoke to Jimmy within two days of him taking over and he told me he wanted me to stay.

“I wanted to stay at Bradford anyway, so in the end it wasn’t a really hard decision – this is where I wanted to be.

“But it was a massive boost for me when Jimmy said that and automatically builds confidence in you as a player.

“He said that he had coached against me at Leeds and wanted me to be here for next year.”

Purtell said his agent had fielded interest from other clubs but that he had no real desire to leave.

Head coach Lowes said: “Adrian is a very experienced player who boasts bags of quality.

“He was very keen to stay and I know how determined he is to play a part in what we hope to achieve next year.

“Adrian represents another fantastic addition to what is already a promising squad. I cannot wait to get going with pre-season training in October.”

Purtell, meanwhile, is already looking forward to hitting the ground running in pre-season as he recovers from injury.

He said: “I tore a ligament in my foot and had some bad bone bruising in my heel.

“I was probably playing with that for two or three weeks longer than I should have.

“That was at a time when the season was still in the balance and we were hoping to stay up.

“It has taken a little bit longer to heal than I’d hoped but I spoke to Jimmy and we’re focused on getting my body right and having a really big season next year.”

Meanwhile, further signings will be announced at tomorrow’s ‘An Evening with the Bulls’ event at Odsal, where 2015 season-tickets will also be launched.

Newcastle St James' Park will host the Super League’s Magic Weekend in 2015.

Three games will be played on Saturday May 30 and another three the following day as all 12 teams do battle.

The event, which has previously been staged in Cardiff and Edinburgh, heads north after three years at the Etihad Stadium, which is unavailable next May.