A few thoughts on where the club is going : Mon Apr 08, 2019 9:39 am  

So, I've had a few thoughts about how the Bulls are doing and where they're likely going.

I know with the rumour about Wilson going to Huddersfield for a six figure sum, a lot of people are worried that we're just going to become a feeder club. However I don't think this is the case. The fact is, we're a Championship club and as long as we remain such, then whenever a SL club comes knocking then our best and brightest are going to want to move on and you can't expect them to do otherwise. But I think that we can expect to see any junior leaving Bradford for a SL club will command a decent fee rather than the pittances that we've gotten for players such as Bateman or any of the Burgess boys.

Then there's the ticket price - yes, pay on the day is expensive, however this is really only an issue for away fans. The club have, rightly IMO, taken the view that you're not going to get a big away crowd descending on Odsal while the Bulls play in the Championship and as such have moved to offer Bradford fans options so that they can watch the Bulls for as little as £15 for an adult per game while, admittedly, trying to extract the most out of the small number of away fans who show up. We're still getting 4k crowds which is still one of, if not the biggest gates in the Championship and this means we're in a position to recruit a team which, if not this year, will certainly be in a position to push for a promotion place next year.

All in all, there does seem to be a long term plan in place with regards to getting the club back into SL and it seems to be a 2 pronged attack in that we're putting together a solid 1st team as well ticking other boxes that will likely be needed should licencing make a return such as a strong youth set up, reserve grade and a women's team too.

[Bullseye]

Re: A few thoughts on where the club is going : Mon Apr 08, 2019 9:58 am  

So long as we hang onto some of our kids it’s kind of inevitable we’ll lose the best ones at some point while we remain in the Championship. The owner has to balance ambition with realism. A poop or bust attempt to get promoted will see us go out of business so we can’t hold on to them all. As things stand Wilson wasn’t getting in the side and it seems daft to hang onto a player of that age and of such value if we’re not going to use him.

So long as we continue to progress that’s ok. We need to finish as high up the table as possible to get more central funding. As far as SL is concerned I think it’s miles away so we need to be sustainable with the aim of getting in the top 5.

The risk is that we spend too much on staff and playing squad and have to sell to stay afloat. Then we end up having to sell for next to nothing. Chalmers will need to budget very carefully as it’s a fine line.