We definitely shouldn't. There's a world of difference between ground sharing and amalgamating the clubs. I think the vast difference between the finances needed to be successful in soccer and RL makes any integration of the financial sides of the two clubs to be quite out of the question.

I am a Halifax fan, i support both Halifax teams and beleive me this isnt a good idea.

The Rugby and the Football fans resent each other, there's constant jibbing, on the respective Football and Rugby fans messageboards, if a rugby fan goes on the football messageboard and see's it it will turn into a slnging match on RLFANS. and the same the other way round.

The "you wendyballers keep messing up our pitch"

and "get your own ground then cause we were here first you egg chasers"

are comments i here so often, you have larger fan bases for both the football and the rugby too than Halifax, so the divide would be even bigger and the jibbing would be even worse

Oh for sure mate, it goes on already. I think the majority of fans (as I suspect in Halifax as well?) would realise why things like this are done, much as the fringes tend to rail against it.

I guess it helps if both clubs are in a similar position, where neither can just carry on in the old way without the other to share the costs burden. It concentrates the mind on exactly what is important, on both sides.

This thread is one that keeps recurring, but I think that each time it comes up, there is a good reason to have another look at the situation. The change this time is the very real possibility that City could be relegated this year. This does and should change people's thinking on the matter.

As a season ticket holder at Both City and Bulls, and someone who as an 8 year old was in the paddock of the main stand on 11/05/85, I accept that those who are shouting loudest are those who are against a ground share / merger / any link at all between the two clubs. However, taking a common sense approach ( I know, very risky, especially in Bradford) we need to look at the reality.

From a Bulls in superleague perspective, we should ask if Odsal in its current (and likely permanent) state is going to be able to sustain an SL franchise and allow for a rebuilding of long term success. we are fortunate that a number of clubs are worse off than us in tersm of the license applications, otherwise we would struggle. if the current system stays, then in the next couple of license applications we could find ourselves in bother.

From a City point of view, we need to look at whether the rent they are paying to stay at VP is the main factor in them not doing anything other than balancing the books, and spiralling closer to non league football.

Neither club is in the golden era that they were 10/11 years ago, as it was not financially viable. That needs to be addressed by both parties.

On the idea of a shared training facility. Why would this be bad? perhaps it could be offset by free rent for a fixed time? The facility at Tong has potential. I've already seen David Baldwin (City COO) there on occasions, and in the next 12 months there is the possibility of another (grass) pitch or two being there, to complement the 3g pitches, as the Yorkshire Martyrs site closes in July and will most likely be bulldozed and reclaimed. the current bulls grass trainingpitch is on land reclaimed from the demolished Tong school, so it can be done quite quickly.

this all hinges on what agreement can be come to by Gordon Gibb, the owner of VP, and whoever rents it from him. If City go down, and Lawn and Rhodes bail out, then he will be sat on nothing. He is sensible enough to know this. The idea of the money that has been set aside by the council for the Odsal redevelopment being used to fund VP being bought as a community stadium isnt a bad one. Straight away, Bulls would have a ground at the same modern standards as any in superleague. Both clubs could agree a rent that enabled them to function properly, and city would benefit by having some security in terms of a much reduced financial outlay.

Odsal could be retained in its current state to host lower grade games for both clubs, and take advantage of the massive potential from the Coral stand.

In terms of the areas that VP and Odsal are in, i can honestly say that in 20+ years of supporting both teams, our car has only been damaged once, and that was on Halifax road during a Bulls match. Again, if people take the time to ask, there are plenty of decent pubs / clubs that are open to fans on matchdays that offer decent parking, a nice pint and friendly atmosphere. It would take some getting used to, and I would love for both clubs to be able to stay at their homes forever. But I just cant stand the idea of either going to the wall for the sake of the non silent minority.

Both clubs pay the same amount of rent to use the ground, there is no way 1 of the clubs alone could afford to use the shay without the other team, so i guess its best for both clubs.

there is a certain amount of hatred between both sets of fans

Can anyone think of a very large city quite nearby where the football and RL fans have pretty much zero animosity and wish one another well? An anagram of Ledes.

What it must be like for everyone in the city to pull together and lend one another their support unlike the absolute muppets in Halifax, Oldham, Wigan, Bradford and Hull to name just a few. I must say the sort of petty mean-spirited jealousy you will witness in any conversation between the two sets of fans really p1sses me off. Any Bull fans that slag off City or visa versa should be roundly pilloried from their fellow fans for being a total d1ck.

So there!

That's a very interesting & valid point. Having worked in Leeds for over 2 years I would say most people have an interest &/or support for the Rhinos, especially older ones; I can't say I have ever heard anyone from Leeds slagging them off. There is an obvious renewed interest in LUFC but I knew more people at Bradford who were passionate supporters of LUFC. Again I cannot remember anyone dissing them, more a general disinterest in football itself.

As a traitor who was born in Leeds and has always lived in the city I was largely unaware growing up that football and Rugby fans in other places had such a bee in their bonnet about one another. Theres always some contrived sense of injustice that they use as justification rather than just saying "I don't like X but I'm not sure why".

Difference in Leeds compared to Bradford is that niether sport is seen as a threat to the other, and neither sport is cr@pping themselves over whether they can afford to stay in/develop their stadium without dragging the other sport in to share.

I thought about that, but there must have been a time when you were both successful in the not too distant, but still hated each other?

there was applause at Odsal when City got promotion to the premier league IIRC.

I sneaked out of work early to go see the open topped bus on gordon terrace in saltaire

The animosity between Bulls and City, to me, seems pretty low... well compared to the animosity between Latics and Warriors fans in Wigan. They seem to hate each other.

That said, I'm a Leeds United fan (yeah, sorry... but I use the word fan losely, I haven't been to a game for years and I'm much more objective in my view of football than rugby) and I don't like Leeds Rhinos at all, haha. And as a Bulls fan, I don't really mind Bradford City - I wish them well at least anyway.

I think this supposed "hatred" is overblown to be honest, mostly in evidence from some empty vessels on a couple of forums and the T&A.

To be honest I can barely recall anything other than the odd snide comment, usually about who was on the back of the T&A the most, until the VP groundshare, I even seem to recall the Bulls squad parading a trophy at a City game in the not too distant past.

Not that I can recall. Indeed, usually the opposite apart from the usual handful of fekkwits on both sides.

Where there has been animosity in recent years, it has been almost entirely over stadium (as in...can't afford it) issues on both sides. Backs against the wall job. Otherwise, like I suggest the large majority of Bulls fans, I wish the Bantams well and hope they can manage to drag themselves back up from where they currently unreasonably languish. The city could sure do with it.

Ah, your the token Bulls Fan then!

Have to agree though. I was gobsmacked at the animosity over on the Wigan board between football and rugby fans. I mean, whats the population of that town?.....20 thousand max?

There's nowt so strange as folk!

Wigan the town, population over 80k. Wigan the metropilitan borough (i.e comparable with leeds or Bradford) is around 300k.

hth

If I may? As an outsider?

TBH I find it curious that there is the animosity between fans of the RL and the football as there is no real reason why they should be a direct threat to each other. In general the games are played on different days (or at differing times on the same day) so there should not be an issue over attendances being compromised.

However.....

I look at the clowns on Soccer AM (or Tim Lovejoy as it was) who regularly take a pop at the "eggchasers" as they so intelligently put it does not help as the average football fan (and bear in mind that I have always been a football fan first and foremost) gets taken in by that sort of thing.

Then we get Wigan.....

First of all - did anyone see their pitch the other day?? It was an utter disgrace. However no doubt when it is a couple of weeks into the season, all you will hear is about how playing Rugby League at the "DW Stadium" has made the pitch the state it is in. I accept that there are a few murmurings about it at the moment but it will all get brushed aside until they can blame the minority sport rather than a team from the mighty Premiership.

Their rivalry seems obvious to me though. The move to the new stadium clearly benefitted the Latics rather than the Cherry and Whites. Wigan RL had been used to having success at Central Park and their fans were far more vociferous about the move than the Latics who were bad, and getting worse and playing at an absolute dump at Springfield Park. Unfortunately for the Rugby side (until 2010 of course) the move coincided with the worst run they have had in a long long time whilst the Football side went from Conference favourite to Premiership regulars in the same time as Whelan clearly saw the financial benefits of getting a Premiership side in his ground.

The salary cap stifled Wigan RL, the Latics had millions thrown at them and suddenly the people of this "Rugby town" had competition and it was always going to cause antagonism through envy.

As for Leeds?

I think they benefit from the fact that they revel in the "No one likes us, we don't care" scenario. Therefore their apparent pride in their city (again a view from afar) will lead to their "them v us" thoughts and therefore they will get behind whatever sides represent the city.

Now where does Bradford stand amongst it all?

To the outsider it seems obvious. Richmond crippled the Bantams by copying the idiot Ridsdale from along the way and "chasing the dream". Players being paid ridiculous money was always gonna bite a side like City on the bottom as they do not have a big enough fanbase to justify the outlay, especially when the money men decide that they have had enough playing Championship Manager. They are dropping like a stone down the leagues and look more likely to be playing derbies against Park Avenue then the likes of Huddersfield and Leeds in the foreseeable.

And the Bulls....

Being stifled by a crumbling stadium that they cannot afford to run and needing a way out as soon as possible. Sadly their aint no sugardaddy to help fund any immediate move out of Odsal.

The Bantams fans have an emotional attachment to VP due to the unfortunate events of May 1985 and therefore, and rightly, they want to cling onto their spiritual home, despite it being a white elephant with more empty seats than a Harlequins RL supporters bus.

It is abundantly clear that the only way forward for both sides is a shared 20000 stadium, newly built, as equi-distant to the two grounds as possible. Odsal and VP need to be banished to history and both sides can start moving on. Bradford gets bad enough press without its own people dragging them down over petty rivalries.

It is a shame. Every trip I have made to Bradford I have been fortunate to meet some very special people, after I have passed through Keighley. The city deserves better, the people deserve better and the two clubs deserve better. Bulls to VP? Better option of the two in my opinion but the only option is to build one stadium for the two sides. It has worked for Wigan and to a lesser extent Hull and Huddersfield. Bradford have the potential to make it work too. There are two sets of highly passionate fans in the city. If they worked together it could well be a success.

Very nicely put ME

That would certainly be the best compromise where both sets of fans give up their spiritual homes and get a modern purpose built stadium. The big difference between bradfords situation and likes of wigan,hull and hudds is that neither bulls or city own their grounds so have no asset to sell to fund a new build stadium. Also both are tied to there existing grounds financially. bulls through having to repay odsal settlement if we leave odsal and city through there rent agreement.

Nonsense, you support Dundee








Horrid, but funny

Now I know we have had our run ins in the past FA but that is just mean......

With that good fortune I hope you do the lottery.

The biggest problem has always been that, whilst other towns and cities are allowed to have retail backed stadia built by the private sector/council, Bradford isn't. Even when we organise a sports village, the powers that be organise a big recession/banking collapse just to ensure it won't happen.

Paranoid? Moi?

Imagine how dominant the side we'd started assembling in the late thirties would have been. They had to go and organise a World War to stop us.