JOHN Bastian has hailed BullBuilder’s support in raising money for the development of academy prospects – as both the Under-19s and Under-16s prepare to get their season’s underway after an intense pre-season.

A visit to Catterick in November to work with the Yorkshire Regiment provided the squad with an intense, demanding two days of training before a more recent trip to Bridlington.

Ahead of their respective season-opening fixtures, Bastian believes their efforts in pre-season will bear fruit across the coming weeks and months.

“It has been a very long pre-season but it ultimately has been one of the best since our first game against St Helens in November,” said Bastian.

“We went to Catterick and had two and a half days of really intense training. It was very demanding but from an individual and team perspective there were good work ethics.

“We were very grateful for what the Yorkshire Regiment did for us and then we went to Bridlington and had a morning working on the beach and then at the rugby union club.

“There has been a lot of positive things in pre-season that are all designed to get the boys ready for the start of the campaign.

“The programme has been challenging but you can see they are eager to improve and we can be really pleased with how pre-season has gone.

“There is no reason why, if we look after the players and they are prepared to work hard, the success rate we have cannot continue.”

During the off-season, BullBuilder have raised funds for new ‘Nacsport’ analysis software which has been installed at the club’s Tong training base – as well as ‘Re-Boot’ systems to aid the players’ recovery from injuries and fatigue.

Their investment allows Bastian and his team to continue to produce stars of the future, with the likes of Rowan Milnes, Oliver Wilson and Mathew Storton all making the step up to the first-team in 2018.

And the Bulls' Head of Youth is quick to praise BullBuilder’s efforts in supporting the academy.

“BullBuilder have spent a lot of money from September to February to give us terrific advantages to make a difference and that is pretty special,” said Bastian.

“Their outstanding support is having a massive impact and we as a club really appreciate all they do for us.

“The supporters and members who go to the events and raise money for our youth development – they deserve all the accolades and credit they get.”