Bradford Bulls were at their North Yorkshire retreat last night as they began the build-up to the Grand Final showpiece at Old Trafford next Saturday.

They used the Harrogate training base in the build-up to the devastating semi-final performance against St Helens and assistant coach Mick Potter says they hope that sticking with the winning formula will produce a similar result on the big day.

"We don't see any point changing players' routines too much at this stage but a couple of days away should help get everyone in the right mood.

"We will start to step things up next week and I am sure that come next weekend we will be as well prepared as we possibly can be to do the job."

One of the first tasks on Monday will be to assess the prospects of second-rower Mike Forshaw who has missed the last three games with a fractured fibula.

"Mike has been telling everyone he will be ready and it would obviously be a boost if he were to be declared fit.

"It will give Matt (Elliott) another selection headache but I am sure he prefers it like that."

Difficult decisions will include whether to prefer Forshaw to youngster Jamie Peacock on the bench and to consider if they can afford two three-quarters on the bench, in Paul Deacon and Nathan McAvoy, as they did against Saints in what promises to be a tough forward battle."

Meanwhile the Bulls claim they have made a very positive start in their bid to take up to 30,000 fans with them to Manchester.

Already around 15,000 tickets have been snapped up from Odsal and through Super League headquarters in Leeds while 60 coaches have been filled.

"Leeds took around 15,000 to last year's final and we will certainly beat that," said Bulls spokesman Stuart Duffy.

"Sales have slowed understandably after the initial rush earlier this week but we expect sales to pick up again over the weekend and next week when a lot of people get paid."

Sales were continuing until 5.30pm tonight and the ticket office will be open from 9.30am to 12.30pm tomorrow.

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