HE may be staying in the shadows.

But Kieron Purtill is shining brightly as a key member of the Giants’ coaching team as Huddersfield have stormed to the top of the Super League XVIII table.

And that’s not come as a surprise to anyone.

The former Leigh scrum half initially proved his worth with the Giants in 2008 when he successfully took temporary charge alongside current head coach Paul Anderson following the sacking of Jon Sharp towards the back end of the season.

He then moved to St Helens and worked under Mick Potter and then Royce Simmons, while completing a Post Graduate Diploma in Elite Coaching Practice at the University of Central Lancashire at the same time.

It was also while at Saints he was appointed head coach of the England Knights.

But following the dismissal of Simmons midway through last season, Purtill also left the scene, with Anderson quick to pounce and bring him back to the club where he had originally cut his coaching teeth in 2005.

The pair had obviously worked well in the past and, with former Giants captain Chris Thorman also back at the club as Anderson’s other assistant, the coaching ‘dream team’ had been completed.

It’s clearly early days.

But it’s already obvious their methods are reaping the healthiest of rewards, with the Giants having won their opening three Super League games for the first time in the club’s history to sit proudly at the top of the table.

Purtill knows now is not the time to rest on any laurels, with a lot of hard work still ahead.

Yet having already disposed of Wigan, St Helens and London Broncos, he knows his club couldn’t have made a better start ahead of tomorrow’s challenging trip to Wakefield Trinity Wildcats (3.30).

“I think everyone has thoroughly enjoyed the start we’ve made, and I’m certainly no exception,” said Purtill.

“I was delighted when I had the chance to come back, and it’s been an easy transition for me, because so many staff and players are still here from the last time.

“Obviously, the key to coming back was the chance to work with Baloo again. We’ve always had a great relationship and understanding.

“And Chris has come in and added even more to the way we work.

“As a coaching team, we don’t really have defined roles as such.

“They’re split between us and we’ve got a bit of a ‘brains trust’, with a lot of ideas bouncing around.

“We all have an input in offence and defence, with everything coming from a general pot, and I think we all complement each other very well. We’re all happy with the way it’s working, so long may that continue.”

But while Purtill is happy for the hard work of the coaching staff to be recognised, he knows where most of the credit should lie.

“That’s obviously the players,” he added.

“As coaches, we can give them pointers, but we’re not the ones having to do back-to-back defensive sets and making 60m tackles.

“Things like down are down to the players having the right attitude and being prepared to work hard for each other. That’s the key.

“We’ve been asked a lot this year if we spent more time in pre-season working on our defence, because we’ve only conceded four tries in our opening three games.

“But that’s not been the case. The emphasis has been on working harder for each other rather than changing the way we defend.

“So far, we’re happy with the way that’s working.”