GEORGE Flanagan is happy to see the Bulls getting straight down to the “nitty gritty”.

John Kear’s side have returned to the Championship in perfect fashion with back-to-back wins.

Something has got to give at the Olympic Legacy Stadium tonight when they face a Sheffield team who have also made a 100 per cent start.

Kear targeted the opening month of the season as a good barometer for his newly-promoted squad.

And Flanagan feels it has already been a useful eye-opener for those tasting second-tier rugby for the first time.

Sunday's win at Swinton Lions was littered with penalties and Flanagan said: “I’m glad it’s like that. It will stand us in good stead for Championship rugby.

“It’s not League One any more. We’ve made a step up and, like with Featherstone, this is the Championship all over.

“You’re up against a nitty, gritty team who are never going to go away. It’s a great experience for some of the lads in our team who haven’t played in the Championship before.

“But they know what to expect now going forward. So, we’re delighted with the 100 per cent start so far.”

Recap: Relive Bulls' win over Swinton

The hooker has been there and done that in his career but can see his younger team-mates learning fast from the tougher environment.

“The experience is invaluable and it will only stand them in good stead going forward,” he added.

“We’ve got Sheffield now, so it doesn’t get any easier.

“We’ll take it game by game but hopefully the young lads will learn from all this and come out the other side better off.”

The Eagles followed up an opening-day thrashing of Swinton with another battling two points against Barrow – and Flanagan is braced for a demanding evening in the steel city.

He said: “Sheffield have recruited really well in the off-season.

“I’ve got a few friends there and watched their game against Swinton and they really did put them to the sword.

“They’ve got some really good half backs there and are really strong across the field.

“It’s going to be another tough test for us, but I’ve got confidence in our boys to do a job over there.

“We’ve come through two good ones so far and now we’ve got another two vital games coming up against Sheffield and York. Let’s see if we can still be 100 per cent after them.”

The Bulls had it tough for most of their win at Swinton before eventually easing away with a late flourish to add some gloss to the 32-12 scoreline.

Kear gave his players a half-time rocket – and Flanagan admitted it was needed to get them going.

“Our game-plan wasn’t being executed. We were making stupid decisions and playing into their hands.

“But John gave us a few stern words and the lads took it on board.

“We were under no illusions that Swinton was going to be another test and expected a bit of a backlash (after their heavy defeat) from the previous week.

“It didn’t surprise us in any way because they are a gritty team. They fought all the way until the last 10 minutes when we ran away with it a little bit.

“It’s a massive field and churned up in the middle so it became a dogfight. But I’ve got to praise our lads because I thought the effort was outstanding.

“It’s always good to start the season well. I know it was going to be tight in the first four games but hopefully we can keep it going.”