Former Bradford Bulls star who suffered heart attack on the field takes new role

Former Bradford Bulls centre Adrian Purtell has been appointed as head coach of the Eden Tigers.

Purtell, who played five seasons at Odsal between 2013 and 2017, will take the reins at the Tigers who are a prestigious local side in Australia.

Eden is a traditional rugby league town and have played in competition since 1946, most recently in the Group 16 competition where their last title came in 2016.

36-year-old Purtell registered 38 tries in 88 appearances for Bradford, before moving to the London Broncos for the 2017 season where he added a further ten appearances to his name.

The rangy centre began his career at the Canberra Raiders in 2009 and had a spell at the Penrith Panthers with over 100 appearances between both clubs.

In fact, it was perhaps a minor miracle that Purtell had a rugby league career past 2012 after suffering a heart attack on the way home from a fixture at that year’s Magic Weekend.

In an incredible turn of events, the centre returned t the field less than a year after the incident and stayed with the Bulls as they endured relegation at the end of 2014.

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