BULLS head coach John Kear says hot prospect Coby Nichol epitomises how well his young guns have done in pre-season, with a couple potentially in line for a surprise appearance in the Championship opener at Dewsbury on Sunday.

Former Rhinos three-quarter Nichol scored a lovely solo try at the back end of Bradford's 42-18 win over Hull FC a fortnight ago, and was one of the many youngsters on the field in the second half of last week's defeat to Leeds.

Kear said: "Coby represents what these young men have achieved over the past few weeks, and it's why so many of them were on the field in the second half against Leeds.

"I'd promised them they'd get a shot against a big team and in front of a crowd like that if they trained hard and impressed me and they did that.

"Some might be in with a shot of the 17-man squad for Dewsbury too, as it's not finalised yet.

"We have got the Leeds loan conundrum (Rhinos loanees Muizz Mustapha, Jarrod O'Connor and Corey Johnson being available) to factor in too, so we're picking from a position of strength."

Kear was coy on any fresh injury news, admitting that there could be players he expects to be out who make themselves available at the last minute.

Aaron Murphy and Ebon Scurr were two of those looking worse for wear after Leeds, with Kear explaining why the 30-12 defeat, after being 12-0 up at the break, didn't concern him.

He said: "We had 10 players under 21 on the field at the end of the game.

"So I was satisfied with the first half, and then the second went how I expected it might, as Leeds had a team littered with fringe and first-team players, and they've got a quality side.

"It was a good experience for our players, and while there are always things to improve on, each pre-season performance showed a step forward."