Shaun Edwards' future at Odsal looks secure after successful talks aimed at clearing the air.

His stay with the Bulls has been punctuated with constant rumours of a move back to Wigan and stories of dressing room friction.

But coach Matthew Elliott stressed today: "The situation is much more stable and everything has been settled amicably. Now we can hopefully put the whole thing behind us."

Edwards played a key role after coming off the bench in the 38-6 Super League opening night win over Huddersfield Giants and made a strong claim for a place in the starting line up for Sunday night's eagerly awaited derby clash with Leeds Rhinos at Odsal.

But Elliott believes he is fortunate to be in contention after being fouled in the act of scoring one of the Bulls seven tries at the McAlpine.

"He has a pretty sore back but it could have been much worse because it was a reckless tackle. He did well to get straight up and not make much of the incident."

Otherwise Elliott reported a clean bill of health from training yesterday and former Leeds winger Jon Scales will be added to the squad if he is passed fit after a broken thumb later in the week.

Bulls officials are confidently predicting they will top their previous highest Super League crowd of 18,387 which watched the clash with St Helens last season.

"We have had a tremendous response already," said Bulls general manager Gary Tasker. "We would strongly advise anyone who wants to ensure a place in the grandstand to purchase tickets in advance."

Meanwhile Maurice Lindsay has hailed a large increase in attendances for the first weekend of the new Super League season.

Top-flight new boys Hudders-field drew a crowd of 12,417 - their biggest gate in 36 years - against the Bulls, while Wigan's clash with Castleford at Central Park was watched by 10,920.

Lindsay, managing director of Super League (Europe), said: "We're delighted with the attendances, which were very encouraging for the launch of Super League III. Wigan's five-figure crowd against Castleford was particularly impressive."

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