46 Players join relaunched Blue Bulls.

The County Borough of Bridgend covers an area that is approximately 13 miles wide and extends a similar distance inland. In 2013 the Borough was an exclusively Rugby Union territory with 20 Senior clubs packed into it's borders.

Now in the Spring of 2014 with the South Wales Scorpions moving to Maesteg and the Bridgend  Blue Bulls relaunching in Pyle, we can at least say that even-though we are still very much in a minority, we are at least on the scoreboard, albeit 20-2 behind.

Currently there are actually more Senior Rugby Union Clubs in Bridgend County than there are Senior Rugby League Clubs in the whole of Wales. Against these kind of figures, do will give up or do we grow? I for one say we grow!

The very fact there are so many Rugby Union Clubs in the County should be seen as a positive thing, as having 20 active senior clubs with many running two sides there is something in the region of 600 players actively playing Rugby Union in the borough, therefore should it really be a surprise that within a few days of relaunching the club 46 of them have agreed to join the Blue Bulls in the Rugby Union off-season?

It is a testament to the growth of Rugby League in the County that for many players the long period of September to April when they are forced to return to Rugby Union is seen to them as the "off season" as they long to return to the code when endless collapsed scrums and aerial ping-pong are nowhere to be seen.

Out of the 46 players now on the books of the Bulls, 30 have played for the Club before, meaning 16 are new to the club, some of whom will be playing League for the very first time.

Although "The Invisibles" side that won the first five Welsh Titles and fielded famous names such as Bateman, Devereux and Ellis is now only a fading memory, regular fans will still recognise plenty of familiar faces from our 2011 title-winning side amongst the 30 who have re-signed, with popular players such as Craig Fox, Gareth Howells, and Nathan Trowbridge turning out once again.

In Cross Keys winger Nathan Trowbridge we have arguably the best player in the League as demonstrated in 2011 when he scored five tries in the Grand Final and followed it up a week later with three for Wales Dragonhearts against England Lionhearts.

Amongst the first 16 new signings are two players at opposite ends of their careers. As one of a number of former age-grade Internationals at the Club, young hooker Xavier Manaseitva will be looking to make a big impression in his first season of senior rugby league and seek to emulate the success of his Father - club legend Tevita Manaseitava. Conversely at the age of 39, former Wales International Paul Morgan has joined the Club and will be looking to "roll back the years" and show some of the skills that once made him a Celtic Crusaders regular.

The possible icing on this already substantial cake is the possibility of the club fielding Wales Sevens player Efan Ellis at half-back. Efan is much in demand on the summer 7s circuit, but it is testament to the good standing of our club that he has shown a desire to play for us if the timing of fixtures allows.

Our squad is by no means full, we are still recruiting as many players as possible due to fluctuating player availability through the summer meaning a large squad is essential in this competition.

Please get in contact with us via Facebook, Twitter, and www.BlueBulls.co.uk if you fancy playing rugby league for Wales' most successful Community Club this summer.