ADRIAN Purtell could never have foreseen how traumatic life would prove when he arrived in England to join the Bulls ahead of the 2012 campaign.

Not in a million years.

The Australian’s four seasons at Odsal have seen plenty of tears and heartache, on and off the field, as well as a huge personal triumph over adversity.

Take the two spells the Bulls have had in administration and the subsequent six-point penalties.

Consider the club’s relegation from Super League in 2014 and the agonising failure to come straight back up last season.

But above all, sit back and applaud the rare fortitude that Purtell showed to bounce back from a life-threatening heart attack.

As Bradford enter the new season, the 31-year-old will lead the club as captain in perhaps the ultimate tribute to his resilience and powers of recovery.

“It has been crazy and seems like I’ve had a lifetime of issues in my four seasons here so far,” says Purtell.

“Character-wise, it has definitely helped me to mature as a person with the things that have happened off the field and even to a certain extent with the things that have happened with rugby.

“Captaining the team that got us back up into Super League would be the ultimate achievement and I’d be lieing if I said it hadn’t crossed my mind.

“That’s not my driving motivation but it would be something I would look back on and be very proud of when I retire.

“But I’ll be proud anyway to have captained such a great club.”

Purtell, a country boy from Albury in New South Wales, began to suffer chest pains shortly after playing in the Bulls' Magic Weekend clash with Leeds at the Etihad Stadium in May 2012.

His condition worsened and he underwent an immediate primary angioplasty to remove a blockage in his artery.

He survived the heart attack, but his rugby league career was naturally plunged into serious doubt.

Would he ever play the game he loved again?

Purtell faced a torturous wait to discover his fate.

He was finally being given the green light to return to action, in a home match against Hull KR in March, 2013.

Purtell can vividly recall the day he was given a second chance at life as a rugby league player.

“It was a long day at the specialists down in London,” he says.

“I went down there in person and I think they forgot I had an appointment because I was about three hours late!

“It was well worth the wait anyway when the doctor gave me that news.

“I always said that I wanted to come back and play, and there were no ifs and buts about that.

“When the doctor game me the all-clear, I set myself a goal to get back playing and that’s just the type of person I am.

“Maybe it was a bit of disbelief when you first hear it because you probably prepare yourself for the worst.

“As soon as I got the green light, I could just rip straight in there because I had been doing a bit of training anyway.

“It gave me something to focus on because when you’re in training, that’s all your mind can focus on, which is a good thing.

“I wasn’t going to come back if I didn’t think I could play to the best of my ability. It was soon business as usual again.”

The imposing centre quickly re-established himself in the team during the 2013 campaign as the Bulls finished ninth – one place short off the play-offs.

He was instrumental again during the disastrous 2014 season which saw the club part company with the top flight after another spell in administration and points penalty.

Perhaps his best season came last term when he made 26 appearances and scored 16 tries.

Naturally, Purtell has learned to value his life and his rugby league career more than in the lights of events during that traumatic day in May 2012.

“I think about it all the time,” he says.

“I guess I’m a very lucky boy in that my body recovered so well.

“Without even realising, I had been playing since I was a kid and a professional since I was seventeen.

“You love playing the game but you can take it for granted a bit and think it’s always going to be there for you.

“When something life-changing like that happens, you realise it’s not always going to be there.

“I have really appreciated the last three years since it has happened.

“I’m trying to improve myself as a player and be as good as I can with everything – around team-mates, fulfilling media commitments, and all the other stuff that comes with it.

“I’m just enjoying it as much as I can because one day, through my choice or not, I won’t be able to play anymore.”

Purtell is noted for his outstanding fitness levels and he has not missed many games since his return in March 2013.

When Chev Walker retired at the end of last season, Purtell was the obvious choice to succeed him.

The former Canberra and Penrith star, who can also play stand-off and in the back row, said: “I’ve become more of a leader in the last few years anyway because we’ve had a lot of new guys coming in.

“But being captain is a big responsibility and hopefully I can lead the team back into Super League.

“I said this time last year that I didn’t want to be out of Super League for more than one season.

“Things didn’t work out last year, but we’ve just got to work hard and try and get back in there for 2017.

“It’s definitely an achievable goal and one that we’re all working hard to make come true.

“I think we got enough motivation after the heartache of last season.

“We said it was a massive year last year, which it was, but it’s done now and I can’t wait for those middle eights again. Hopefully we get an automatic promotion this time around.”

Last August, Purtell agreed a new two-two year contract which keeps him at Odsal until the end of 2017.

He is happy and settled in West Yorkshire and is an ambassador for Leeds-based Heart Research UK.

Purtell explained: “They have been great to me and hopefully I can get a bit more actively involved with them this year.

“After it happened, they approached me and asked if I wanted to help out.

“It was probably something I never put too much thought into, but after the situation I was in I realised how important cardiologists are.

“The amount of lives they save each year in phenomenal.

“I haven’t had a check-up in the last year or so but the RFL have made it compulsory to get a heart screening at the start of the year.

“That can only be a good thing as you’ve seen with recent tragedies such as Danny Jones passing away.

“If a 15-minute test can save a life then that’s fantastic.

“I might try and get down to London this season, just to get a check-up.

“They told I was okay to carry on playing and don’t need to go down there anymore, but it’s more peace of mind.”