Just shows how bent the super league is, it make our sport look like a joke

According to bbc sport the SL have decided to buy the bulls,Our Gary said its in
the best interest of all parties. Apparently he has been quoted as saying the
SL will be responsible for all ongoing debts.
If this is the case and the information coming through is still a bit sketchy it,
Could be setting an interesting precedent for any future major club meltdown .

Not sure how, the other clubs went into administration and backers were found to kake them out of administration.

This option didn't look possible for the Bulls. It seems to me that the RFL (with the agreement of the SL clubs) have managed to prolong the process. My guess is that they will try to sell the Bulls in an orderly fashion or close them down at a time that better suits the integrity of the competition.

I'm not sure if the RFL have done the right thing but I take my hat off them for making a decision which they feel will benefit RL. i'd much rather see money for the rest of the year going to Mick Potter and his coaching team than to the administrator and his team at £200-£300 per hour.

Only question left is has the offer been accepted by the administrator how are the debts of the club dealt with. if it's an offer to take the club out of administration the creditors will be burnt. It will be interesting to see if HMRC accept the integrity of this deal.

There's a difference between on-going debt and historical debt. Interesting to see how HMRC react.

It was all your fault!

What were you nicking from Odsal? The curled up corners?

Here here

I was jaded by work poop when I went on my earlier rant.

I'm now about to leave the office after 30 mins of watching Beach Volleyball on the I-Player and my mood has lightened.

So, I've gone from feeling wearisome and indifferent to the Bulls plight to feeling sympathy because, mainly, of fans like you and Bullseye. But not the pick and mix thief. he's just plain dirt.

Not really. The fact that SL felt the costs vs benefits of buying the Bradford Bulls meant is was a beneficial deal for them does not guarantee that the costs vs benefits of buying any other club will appear to be a worthwhile deal.

I would think the main reason behind this attempt to solve the problem, is
the ownership of odsal. As far as I am concerned its just a big hole in the
ground which SL are stuck with.
I can't see much devolpment potential at odsal,so it is what it is a rugby
ground,albeit an old fashioned one.
Please don't tell me they could reintroduce speedway riding.

Having read some of the posts above, a few corrections, if I may...

It's the RFL, not SL, who own the lease to Odsal.
Its SL, not the RFL, who are bidding for the Bulls.
It's the RFL, not SL, who awards the franchises.
Reportedly, the SL clubs unanimously voted to make the bid.

We can't pin this bid on the RFL.

El Barbudo.
I stand corrected Thanks.

But the RFL have the power to block any bid for the bulls so even if they are not making it they have the power to prevent it

SLE is a company, don't the RFL own it in some way, isn't it basically there to help the RFL distribute money to the clubs?

The RFL as a governing body should set the rules regarding these matters, not a small number of clubs within the game - I do not know if this will turn out to be the right decision but if it does not the RFL should have further serious questions to ask on top of those already arising

So does that mean Bradford is now owned by the other "Super League " clubs ?

Should this assumption be correct how does the money Bradford owe get repaid and by whom ?

What happens when London Broncos/Salford and whichever other club losing money gets into financial trouble ?

How can clubs compete with a club they have a financial interest in ?

I think it has to be the RFL.

Oh by the way I want Bradford Bulls to stay in existence but this move makes a mockery of a pro sport with a supposedly level playing field.

Apologies to Batley and Featherstone of course.

If Bradford go over the salary cap, who will the fine go to?

Worse... How could it be worse?

All I said to my wife was "that piece of halibut was good enough for Jehovah"

Comparisons with other clubs and other industries are highly spurious. In SL terms Bradford are one of the 'big' clubs. With all due respect to Wakefield and Widnes (who weren't even in SL at the time they went bust) they are not in the same league if you'll pardon the pun. IMO SL simply could not afford to lose the Bulls at this stage - and it appears that all the other SL clubs understand this despite whatever bravado they may have come out with in the past.

Right now it doesn't matter one jot who is responsible for the current position - SL has decided that they had to step in or lose the Bulls.

I'd expect that the proposed ownership will only last until the club can be made stable and then SL will seek to offload the Bulls.

If it's commercial/financial concerns that drive this decision, you have to wonder why it's a great bit of business for SL when it is an investment nobody else will touch with someone else's ten foot pole? Where is SL getting the money from? Are the clubs really, as a collective, flush enough to take on an unprofitable business that has proved to be a supermassive black hole for people's money over several years?

I'm not saying the answer is no (I don't have that information) just that I'm surprised that the answer is yes.

I'm sorry but this I vehemently disagree with.

What are you basing this uopn?

If it's history and heritage than a comparison with Widnes might leave the Bulls falling short. Furthermore, your comments about which division Widnes are in seem somewhat harsh given their "artificial" relegation in the past.

Wigan got relegated once, when the game was a lot less healthier. The game survived.

There is no rational reason to place more value uopn the Bulls than any other club.

with the staff that have been let go and the lease of the ground not being paid the Bulls could be profitable in the short term, giving enough time to allow investers to come on board. I base this on the following assumptions

1. Coaches etc that are currently working for free will continue to help the club through to the end of the season
2. The lease payments to the RFL are suspended. whilst the RFL and SL are different bodies,the RFL would receive no revenue if the bulls were liquidated, on that basis I can see payments being suspended for a period to allow the Bulls to finish out the season.

The main issue now will be whether the bulls can continue in SL for 2013 and if so the player retention /recruitment policies that the club will have.

If they are allowed to stay in SL for 2013 I can see a number of loan players in the team and this could be an opportunity for Leeds to blood some of the youngsters that are potential SL players.

2) Makes the RFL's decision to buy out the lease in the first place a terrible business decision doesn't it?

Now I've had chance to mull this over I suspect that Superleague have just attached a parachute to the Bulls.

They are still going down but they have been bought a bit of time, and their descent can be controlled.

Quite the opposite.

The RFL were a creditor of the Bulls. They were owed money. They didn't pay for the leasehold, the accepted it in settlement of their debt.

As the Bulls have since that date gone into administration and are facing liquidation the RFL have, quite cleverly, avoided the situation of being a creditor in a pretty bad insolvency. They also accquired an asset (value tbd) which could be quite useful going forward.

It was a very smart move by the RFL.

i'm not saying it couldn't make a profit when paying staff, i'm just suggesting that the "new" club could try to get the coaches to work for less /nothing to close out the season whilst the club is being prepared for sale.

leases usually have a get out clause in them should either party enter administration /receivership. On that basis the lease will need to be renegotiated. Whether the RFL deal is good or not depends on
1) how much they paid
2) If they can get newco to agree to lease
3) The long term vision they had when they bought the lease.

Aye and this controlled landing may allow the bulls to regain their wings. I suggest the potential resurrection should be as the steam pigs. Then we may be able to see if pigs really can fly.

Haven't read thread so don't know if this has already been posted but: www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/19110189 Basically it's a temp solution as others have suggsted until an unconditional bid is found. 1.5 million in debt, players free to find other clubs to secure future. as someone said above, theyve just had a parachute attached, the fall be slowly and not as hard.

Haven't read thread so don't know if this has already been posted but: www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-league/19110189 Basically it's a temp solution as others have suggsted until an unconditional bid is found. 1.5 million in debt, players free to find other clubs to secure future. as someone said above, theyve just had a parachute attached, the fall be slowly and not as hard.

I would be extremely interested to see an independent valuation of odsal.
Commercial property prices have dropped through the floor,and are still
Dropping, as I have found to my cost.
Also odsal is an unusual site ,it probably would be a difficult site for a
devolpment .