NEW Bradford Bulls head coach Eamon O’Carroll is delighted to be walking into a stable first-team environment, but wants to add a sprinkling of his own magic to ensure the side “reach their potential”.
A third-placed finish, combined with the fact the majority of the 2023 squad have been retained and that O’Carroll will be working alongside last season’s interim coaches Lee Greenwood and Brian Noble, means the new man does not exactly have to rip up the script for 2024.
Not that it will exactly be the case of same again.
Giving his first sit-down interview as Bulls head coach, having arrived in the country from France and former club Catalans Dragons a fortnight ago, O’Carroll said: “That was one thing that was important to me, recognising how well the team and club did last year.
“That’s due to the people that are here, so I’m really happy we’ve kept the majority of the squad and done really well in adding to that.
“In terms of the staffing, I’m really happy. I’ve got a really good relationship with Lee, because I spoke to him on a weekly basis when I was in France.
“I think he did a tremendous job alongside Nobby and I’m looking forward to working with Nobby again too, because I haven’t done that since I was a young player at Wigan.
“I’m glad there’s not been too much change, but it’s important we add little bits to that so we can reach our potential.”
O’Carroll was coy on how Bulls can be expected to set up tactically next year, but he said: “As I’ve said, it’ll be building on what they’ve already been doing.
“I’ve been really impressed, having watched a lot of their games last season in France, so it’s important, as their coach, that I recognise we’ve got a good base from 2023.
“Of course I want to add little bits to that, and with our recruitment so far, we’ll do that, as we can play a little bit more.
“For me as a coach, it’s about understanding what we want to do, and we do that by nailing the fundamentals first.
“It’s not a new start for me, but it’s a fresh start, so we’ll see how we go in pre-season.
“I’ve got certain things I want to do but we have to make sure we perfect those key areas first before we build on that.”
Eye-catching signings like those of Dan Smith and John Davies should lead by example on that front, and with an experienced core staying put at the club too, O’Carroll is feeling relaxed over recruitment.
He said: “I’m really happy with where we’re at with the squad, but that doesn’t mean we won’t add to it if needed.
“We’ll always be looking to add quality if we can, but if we were to start pre-season training tomorrow, I’d be happy with where we’re at.”
Speaking of pre-season, which restarts on Monday, November 20, O’Carroll likes what he sees of Bulls’ base at Tong.
He said: “I’m really impressed with the place, I said that to (Bulls CEO) Jason Hirst as soon as I came here. The club’s got a lot of history and you can see that within the facility.
“We’ve got everything we need here and probably more, so it’s just up to us to maximise that now.”
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