AT THE start of this season, Marc Green paid tribute to managing director Steve Ferres for the squad he had assembled.

"If we are fortunate enough to get promoted, then Steve deserves all the credit," said the Bulls owner in February.

"He has demonstrated that he knows what he's doing and, come rain or shine, we will be in the right position at the right time with Steve here.

"I have the utmost faith in him. I am absolutely over the moon with the quality of the squad that we've got.

"We've got some great experience, a great coach and a great system behind the coach.

"I think Steve has proven his worth and his knowledge of the game with the team he has assembled here. I give him total credit for that."

Praise does not come much higher.

Ferres, who boasts around 40 years' experience in the game as a player, coach and administrator, faced a mountainous task to rebuild the squad when the Bulls' relegation from Super League was confirmed last July.

The team had been sleepwalking towards the drop all year but, when it became official, Ferres set about assembling a group of men ready to challenge for an immediate return.

Luke Gale, Manase Manuokafoa and James Donaldson secured moves to Super League clubs, while Jamie Foster, Elliot Kear and Luke George were not offered new deals.

But plenty of last year's squad, many of them seasoned top-flight performers, chose to stay.

Take Dale Ferguson, Jay Pitts, Adrian Purtell, Adam O'Brien, Tom Olbison, Adam Sidlow, Lee Gaskell, Danny Addy and Matty Blythe.

Give Ferres much credit for that, particularly in the case of Gaskell. But another major factor in the Bulls' promotion hopes lay in who was recruited externally.

It was always going to be difficult to start signing players when the club had been relegated. Nevertheless, a huge squad was assembled, which seemed sensible after last season's desperately low numbers.

With the Bulls generally enjoying good fortune with injuries this year, and Jimmy Lowes largely sticking with the same side most weeks, a number of new recruits have been left on the outside looking in.

Paul Clough has proved a fine acquisition and Jake Mullaney has looked very useful when fit – but others have struggled to make much impression.

In fairness, a good proportion of them have not had much chance to.

Dave Petersen and Karl Davies have not made a single first-team appearance this season following their recovery from injuries.

Chris Ulugia featured in the first few weeks before getting injured and then sent on loan to Oxford.

Sheffield boss Mark Aston is already talking about signing Petersen on a permanent deal for next season.

Davies also played at Oxford but it is not clear if he will be given a chance at Odsal.

Samir Tahraoui and Davies arrived amid much fanfare, with the Bulls building up the pair as 'The Big Show' and 'The Lumberjack'.

Tahraoui looked to be establishing himself in Lowes' top 17 and at one point appeared to be the third-choice prop behind Clough and Sidlow.

But he was dropped after the Easter Monday win at Dewsbury and has not been seen since. He is currently playing on loan at Keighley.

Dan Fleming, another new recruit who has showed signs of promise, has also played for Oxford in recent weeks.

Vila Halafihi has made two substitute appearances off the bench for the Bulls but he too is now at Oxford.

Lucas Walshaw? Currently on loan at Dewsbury. Ryan Shaw has scored tries and kicked plenty of goals – but then last month Lowes signed James Mendeika on a long-term deal.

Epalahame Lauaki has become a regular but he does not play big minutes and, by his own admission, is yet to hit top gear.

And it is not only some of the new recruits who have struggled for game-time this season.

Home-grown youngsters Adam Brook and Nathan Conroy have been sent on loan to Keighley and Dewsbury respectively, while Sam Bates has yet to feature under Lowes.

It has to be remembered, of course, that rotation is not for Lowes. He will pick his best team every week and a run of 16 straight victories certainly speaks for itself. Why change a winning team?

As the Super Eights come into focus, we are currently seeing Lowes' favoured 17, with the exception of the injured Gaskell.

With numerous players currently out on loan, perhaps the Bulls have created space on the salary cap to recruit a player (or players) who could make all the difference in the Middle Eights.

But if they do go up – and it remains a huge if – then the backbone of the side will be formed by players who were here last season.