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pop along and have your say and join group ! www.facebook.com/groups/368708236535465/

On what grounds?

Other than you've heard the phrase being used and thought that by repeating it it some how validates the chip on your shoulder

The games sponser, our disciplinary system that used to be the envy of sports around the world, now its a farce. The referees/ officials are so bad, people who have been watching the game for 30+ years get baffled by em and say how terrible they are. The deal with sky should be at least double what it is. Clubs like bradford should not be going out of business. Our game is turning into a complete joke when we all know its the greatest sport on earth.


the chip on my shoulder is felt by more than just me, the super league is being laughed at because of morons within red hall . and if you was honest you'd see it !

Think he's just made you look like a bit of a tool. And he's correct on all those points. Perhaps a few more checks on your club before they were awarded a license for superleague and the RFL would have found out how much brown stuff you were in and could have offered advice and certainly stopped some stupid scheme's like ticket prices and helped in other areas.


Yes Bradford have made mistakes but the governing body must hold some of the responsibility.

I call it all rather ungrateful after RFL announce they will be paying the players wages for the short term ....... Tut Tut . www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/18781736

I call it all rather ungrateful after RFL announce they will be paying the players wages for the short term ....... Tut Tut . www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/18781736

Right, let's address each one of those shall we?

The game's sponsor? I assume you're referring to the deal with Stobart. The thing is, you seem to be under the impression that RL is anything more than a regional sport. We're not, that's one of the main factors in there being a lack of money in the game and why SL is becoming more and more a league of the haves and have nots. Hull FC are an example of a club who were a have not but now have a new owner with money to pump into the club and are slowly looking like becoming haves. Will they be able to put together the same sort of high profile team that Warrington have managed? Time will tell. But I'm getting ahead of myself. In case you missed it, the world's finances are in meltdown. Companies aren't as willing to throw large wad's of cash. At least Stobart are a company from the heartlands of RL and at least they were willing to put money into the game.

On what measurable scale has discipline in RL been the envy of the world? I'm interested to know. Could you maybe back that statement up with facts? A quote from members of governing bodies from other sports stating their envious nature perhaps?

Show me one sport that doesn't have it's fans complaining about the officials. Yes, there are some questionable decisions given in RL but the same can be said for any sport. And just like any other sport, those questionable decisions tend to balance out over the course of a season. It's a perfect system? No, not by any means, but no system can be because people aren't perfect. They miss things, they make mistakes.

The deal with Sky should be more. Again, I refer you back to the fact that RL is a regional sport. Yes, I know there are amateur clubs up and down the country, but the majority of the top division and the majority of it's homegrown talent can be found along the M62 corridor. Sky pay us what they think we're worth to them in terms of viewer numbers and sponsorship and advertising they can sell around our game. Sky have us over a barrel. Where else are we going to get a tv deal? ITV? They're barely still a channel. The Beeb? They see us for what we are and play up to that. So again I ask, who'd be willing to put the time and money into a tv deal? And without that TV money you can say bye bye to a 14 professional team league.

Bradford are going out of business due to poor management. The RFL haven't been setting the budgets at Odsal, or agreeing player contracts, agent fees or setting ticket prices

So being honest, your arguments all seem to fall under populist rubbish and as usual for these forums no sensible solution is put forward. Just buzzwords that you think so how can stand in for a structured argument. You haven't suggested HOW to change the system, just what you think is wrong with it. So your "no confidence" stance comes across more as moaning about it rather than looking to find solutions for change.

Because the cougar-troll is an idiot who doesn't, or possibly can't, read.

The RFL are not paying the wages. They've agreed to advance Bradford money from the Sky deal. Something that Bradford aren't alone in asking for. Many clubs have done it.

But, stupid trolls on these forums see this as the RFL some how LENDING the money to Bradford or in some cases they think that the RFL are just giving them money out of the goodness of their hearts.

I wouldn't disagree with most of that, especially the part about poor management but supercat makes the point about the financial checks prior to recieving our license. Well perhaps, but what really needs to be looked into is what happened around the RFL lending the club 700k in November(?). Considering the licensing process only ended in late July, wasn't there some concern that 3 months later the Chairman of the Bradford Bulls asks for such a sum? Who said what to who, who looked at the books and why didn't big flashing lights and sirens go off in Red Hall? By February the RFL had bought lease on the ground to ward off 'predators', despite the site being owned by the council - a decision, none of the other clubs apparently knew about until it was completed.

The Bulls are the authors of their own downfall and the RFL are not to blame for all ills in the game but there are some huge unanswered questions about their conduct in this matter.

It's all a little rich coming from a fan of GatesHull.

Just as with the club there are management issues at the RFL, but in this case they really were between a rock and a hard place. Can you imagine what would happen to the Premier League if Chelsea went bust? It almost the same as with everyone's favorite businesses the banks - the Bulls were/are too big to be allowed to fail.
But as with football and most other professional sports it is hard to see how the current set up of the highest league is sustainable in it's current form and is only being propt up by wealthy individuals being happy and able to continue to throw money at their pet teams.

Yes, it would carry on unaffected. And anyway, Chelsea must be more bust than Buster McBust already if Mr Abramovich wanted to take all his "investment" out.


Apart from the fact that the "wealthy owner" is THE worldwide template for successful top level teams in all major sports. None of it would happen without them, all you would have is the Port Vales v the Crewes. There IS no other form, since it is not possible for these clubs to make enough money to operate like they do. And the fans are also to blame since they insist on their wealthy backers spending money, even Abramovich is under attack at Chelsea by large factions for having failed to hoover up enough of the world's best players.

Fair points and Football has the advantage of being a global game and attracting the uberrich so not really a fair comparison. But the issue for RL is if we are brutally honest it is not even a national sport and many of the clubs - as we have found - are not in areas populated by millionaires. So the particular issues for SL are: a) There is a similar but inferior version of the game that attracts our top players, b) Nearly half the SL teams don't have rich sponsors - so if all the teams mooted to be in the red fold you end up with a top flight with half a dozen teams. So still not sure the current "Sugar Daddy" supported model for SL is not sustainable. But I guess if we find one for the Bulls we would stop questioning arrangements but feel it is just postponing the reckoning.

and if you were underperforming at work, and had run out of your last wage half way through the month due to overspending. (effectivly the same situation the Bulls are in)

Would you then approach your boss and ask for an advance on your wage?

what would he/she say?

i suggest the answer would be no right?!

the RFL try to convince that the clubs should be run as a business', however this stinks as charity - special treatment, however you want to dress it up.