Early career Purtell played junior rugby league with
Albury Rams and
Lavington Panthers.
Canberra Raiders He made his début for the
Canberra Raiders in round 1 2006 against the
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. In 2006, he was crowned the club's Rookie of the Year. During the season, he also re-signed with the club until the end of 2008. In round 6 of the
2007 NRL season, Purtell was shifted from the wing to the centres. Purtell took this opportunity with both hands, scoring two tries in his first match in the new position and showing consistent form after that match. Purtell was diagnosed with
deep vein thrombosis in the middle of 2007. He missed the rest of the season as a result. This came at a cruel time for Purtell as he had only just cemented a spot in the centres. In his last game of 2007, he scored 3 tries against the
St George Illawarra Dragons, including a 90-metre solo effort. After a long recovery Purtell made a successful return to rugby league. On 16 March 2008, Purtell completed his return by crossing over for 2 tries against the
Newcastle Knights. Soon after he re-signed to stay with Canberra until the end of the 2011 season, rejecting an offer to join the
Melbourne Storm. He ended the
2008 NRL season as top try-scorer for the Raiders. After being unable to maintain his position in the starting team for the second half of the 2009 season, Purtell was offered a release by Canberra.
Penrith Panthers He joined the
Penrith Panthers from the
2010 NRL season. In his first year at the club, Penrith finished second on the table but were eliminated from the finals series after losing both matches consecutively. The following year, Penrith finished a disappointing 12th on the table and missed out on the finals.
Bradford Bulls It was announced that Purtell signed a 3-year contract with
Super League team
Bradford Bulls.
2012 –
2012 Season Purtell featured in two of the four pre-season friendlies. He played against
Dewsbury Rams and
Hull FC. Adrian featured in two consecutive games from Round 1 (
Catalans Dragons) to Round 2 (
Castleford Tigers). Purtell was injured for Rounds 3–6. He returned in Round 7 (
St. Helens). He was ill for Round 8. He once again returned and featured in four consecutive games from Round 9 (
Hull F.C.) to Round 12 (
Huddersfield Giants). He was injured for Rounds 13–14. He returned to feature in Round 15 (
Leeds Rhinos). Purtell also appeared in the
Challenge Cup against
Doncaster and
Warrington Wolves.
2013 –
2013 Season Purtell missed the pre-season games against
Dewsbury Rams and
Leeds Rhinos due to the doctors not giving him permission to play until April. Due to the doctors orders he missed Rounds 1–6. He made his comeback and played in ten consecutive games from Round 7 (
Hull Kingston Rovers) to Round 16 (
Huddersfield Giants) however he missed Rounds 17-18 due to injury but returned to play in Round 19 (
Widnes Vikings) to Round 25 (
Castleford Tigers). Purtell also featured in the
Challenge Cup against
Rochdale Hornets and
London Broncos.
2014 –
2014 Season Purtell featured in the pre-season games against Hull F.C. and Castleford Tigers. He featured in Round 1 (
Castleford Tigers) to Round 21 (Huddersfield Giants). Adrian also featured in Round 4 (
Oldham R.L.F.C.) to the Quarter Final (Warrington Wolves) in the
Challenge Cup. Purtell scored against
Castleford Tigers (1 try),
Wakefield Trinity Wildcats (3 tries),
Hull F.C. (1 try),
Salford Red Devils (1 try),
Catalans Dragons (1 try), Warrington Wolves (3 tries) and
St Helens R.F.C. (1 try). He signed a new 1 Year deal with Bradford despite their relegation from
Super League.
2015 –
2015 Season Purtell featured in the pre-season friendlies against Castleford Tigers and
Leeds Rhinos. He featured in Round 1 (
Leigh Centurions) to Round 4 (
Hunslet Hawks) then in Round 6 (
Workington Town) to Round 9 (
London Broncos). Purtell also played in Round 11 (
Sheffield Eagles) to Round 13 (
Featherstone Rovers) then in Round 22 (
Leigh Centurions). Purtell played in Qualifier 1 (
Sheffield Eagles) to Qualifier 6 (
Leigh Centurions). Adrian played in the £1 Million Game (
Wakefield Trinity Wildcats). He also featured in the
Challenge Cup in Round 4 (
Workington Town). He scored against
Whitehaven (3 tries),
Featherstone Rovers (1 try),
Workington Town (3 tries),
Sheffield Eagles (1 try),
Halifax (2 tries),
Dewsbury Rams (2 tries),
Wakefield Trinity Wildcats (2 tries),
Salford Red Devils (1 try) and
Widnes Vikings (1 try).
2016 –
2016 Season After the retirement of
Chev Walker it was announced that Purtell would be the captain of the Bulls. He did not feature in any of the friendlies due to a minor injury. Purtell featured in Round 1 (
Featherstone Rovers) to Round 4 (
Leigh Centurions) then in Round 9 (
Sheffield Eagles) to Round 11 (
Workington Town). He played in the Championship Shield Game 2 (
Halifax) then in the Final (
Sheffield Eagles).
London Broncos 2017 –
2017 Season Purtell signed to play for London Broncos in the 2017 season. Purtell featured in Round 1 (
Swinton Lions) to Round 7 (
Rochdale Hornets). He also featured in the Challenge Cup in Round 4 (
Toronto Wolfpack). ==Albury Thunder==