England recognition may have eluded the Bulls’ senior players this year but their junior counterparts are leading the way.

Three of the club’s scholarship players were on duty as England Youth drew their two-Test series against France at Odsal, winning 58-14 on Tuesday after a 19-18 defeat four days previously.

Head of youth development Paul Medley hailed the selection of Curtis Naughton, Josh Casey and Alex Mellor as a source of pride but admits it is only the tip of the iceberg.

“It’s a great experience representing your country and doing it in a sport you love,” said Medley.

“Being the best in their age group is something to be proud of – but there’s a long way to go still.

“They are moving on to the scholarship games, then the academy and under-20s, with the ultimate goal being Super League.

“The kids that don’t quite make it are just as important. They might have missed out because they’re seen as too small or because they’re missing certain skill attributes but they’ll work really hard and may come to fruition later.

“Players develop at different speeds. Elliott Whitehead didn’t make the England under-16s team but he’s now playing Super League.”

The challenges facing Medley and player performance manager Stuart Barrow are getting tougher by the year.

Charged with producing players capable of making the step up to Super League, they are fighting for survival in an increasingly competitive talent market.

The pressure on clubs to bring through more home-grown players at first-team level has increased the premium on young talent and money talks at all levels of the game.

“The biggest challenge is to get the kids into your system in the first place,” said Medley.

“With the focus on home-grown talent, there’s a lot of money being thrown at kids and it’s a very competitive market.

“There are also a limited amount of players in our area, compared to the likes of Wigan or Leeds, so it’s getting more and more difficult.

“It’s a challenge we have to deal with and we have to look at ways we can stay competitive against clubs who have unlimited budgets or have an edge through trophies and grand finals.

“People look at the success of the first team rather than the structures and pathways you have put in place.”

The fight does not end in attracting players to the club. Keeping hold of home-grown talent has proved just as tricky, as the Bulls discovered to their cost when first-teamer Joe Wardle and academy full back Ben Hellewell left to join Huddersfield and Warrington respectively.

Medley said: “When players get into the open market, who knows what will happen?

“Joe Wardle was in that situation and decided to go elsewhere. He’s out there as a home-grown Bradford player but isn’t helping our first team.

“Realistically, if you develop a whole lot of talented youngsters you would be naive if you thought you could keep hold of them all.

“With the salary cap and the increasing influence of agents, the market is far more competitive.

“We’ve got 16-year-olds coming in to talk to us accompanied by agents now, so it’s a massive minefield.”

The structure of the junior competition has presented its own challenges too.

Currently, only three over-age players are allowed to feature in the under-20s side on any given week, causing the gap with Super League to grow.

Youngsters are moving through the system faster and players who have failed to make the grade by the age of 20 will often find the door closed completely.

Medley said: “Our job isn’t to win the competition, it’s to develop players for the first team. It’s about the players who have come through the system and are playing Super League.

“But it’s a big jump to the first team from the under-20s competition. The under-20s competition is getting younger and younger and we’re making decisions on kids far too early.

“Instead of pushing kids through too quickly and have them bashed about in an older competition, we’d rather keep them in the under-18s and allow them to develop.

“So when players have stepped up from the under-20s to the first team, we’ve had to bring in lads from amateur clubs to replace them, who might not be quite up to that level.

“Then, the question is do we want a strong under-20s team and a weak first team or a stronger first team and a weaker under-20s?”