Not sure I'd agree that all RAB members are "hard core" supporters - I have the feeling we have a pretty representative cross-section of the 5000. But just my feeling. If we do have a successful enough start to the year I don't see any reason why we can't get 4K. I do think optimism will be fragile, though, and if we start next year appallingly, as if we've learned nothing, then crowds would be in big trouble. Nobody is going to turn up to many more no-shows or disinterested drubbings.

Another article today urging us to tell all our friends and family to come on down to the fabulous wonderdome. It doesn't take a psychologist to know that issuing the same tired old crap about how the fans simply MUST play their part is starting to wear decidedly thin.

The club has announced buggerall about our 2015 squad so frankly, until they do, they can shut the effup telling us what we should and shouldn't do in supporting them.

Quite. I've read the thing 3 times now and he doesn't actually say anything, it's just all ifs and buts. I mean, ""I think we'll see a different sort of mentality from the board towards the fans," wtf?

I am completely unaware of what mentality (if any) has been shown to me as a fan from the board. What was it? Is it bad? Why is the change (whatever it is) necessary?

The T&A also published an interview with Solly the other day. If and when we get to the point where we have to compete with and beat SL teams in 2015 then we will have to do so with a squad based on a £1million salary cap whereas our SL competitors will have players up to a £1.6m cap.

Next year we will got £0.75m distribution whereas our SL competitors will get £1.6m.

Yep, we will start off before a ball is kicked on £850,000 less than our SL competitors. That is before you factor in the inevitably drastically worsened relative positions in terms of season ticket sales and gate money.

It is all very well Solly claiming to the T&A (as if this were somehow a positive) that that distribution is more than we've been receiving this year and last - we know, Solly. And look where it has left us.

The article in the T&A states that the club are still thinking about going to the high court. Yet the Bulls website from nearly a month ago states clearly that the club ARE going to the high court. Seems the more things change the more they stay the same and the lies from the board room keep coming

Whereas League Express reported (although I didn't read that section myself) that we'd be dropping it, I'm surprised that hasn't made the T&A yet.

The League Express thing basically said “a source at the club” had said they weren’t going to take it any further because we have no chance of catching Salford (which anyone reading this board could have told you two months ago) – which if true begs the question why bother saying you are going to launch action in the first place. Mind you the LE also said a couple of weeks back that the Bulls wanted to be in court within a week, so who knows. Maybe they need to have a word with their source.

Have to say it does wind me up the constant waffling on about the fans need to do their bit – yeah we will if you do yours and not keep saying “we can’t do it ourselves” and make it look like you might not quite know what you are doing.

Don’t think the constant chat about “bring friends who used to be here when we were league champions” helps – a more apt comparison (although one the club should look at in private rather than parrot in the press) is that it was only a few years ago we had 10,000+ season ticket holders. Now I’m not a moron, that’ll never happen again, but it shows there is a willingness to support the club from about 5-6000 lapsed fans – and let’s not forget we were watching some rubbish rugby at that time and probably some of the worst we’ve seen at Odsal in SL outside of this year. Maybe the following administrations have permanently eroded any goodwill, but I don’t think issuing a rallying call for existing fans to get more people through the door is going to have any positive effect. If anything it almost makes me want to not go out of spite (although that would clearly be stupid).

Absolutely right. Not a single fan ever paid through a turnstile as a result of being publicly admonished by a chairman or club officer, and I'm astonished that they still come up with this stuff. It's the 21st century ffs. The notion of significant numbers of lapsed fans paying back in through a sense of obligation awoken by a jolly good ticking off and pep talk is faintly dotty.

Now if Ferres or whoever is in charge of marketing came up with (for example) some sort of attraction for any given one-off game, if they fired people's imagination then we might be able (and willing) to get one or two people to come along for the laugh.

Ferres said that I .. ie me ... and that YOU "NEED TO" get more people to come.


No, Steve Y_O_U need to do that. The people I know who used to come but no longer do will never come back unless and until THEY see that there is something THEY want to attend. I think it is both pointless and insulting to tell me that I "need to" get these people to come back, as if it's MY fault therefore if they don't. I have many times seriously considered joining them. So don't be having a go at me.

Caisley gave us a stern talking to a decade or more ago. It's good that the tried and tested tactic is still being employed. Crowds of £20k await.

It's a question of trust.

We've had Peter Hood's Comedy Ali style of lying about how everything is fine.
Then Omar and his merry men with their questionable business acumen.
But always we've had lie upon lie and the fans have had enough and Ferres and Green need to understand that.

Now, the BOD might be doing stirling work behind closed doors, but the fans haven't seen it. There's this master plan of Green that Ferres keeps alluding to but no one seems to know what it is.

And so it comes back to trust and the honest answer is the fans do not trust the board.

Top post, pretty much spot on.

I do wonder what he thinks the conversation will go like if I went down a pub in Bradford tomorrow

Me: “Hey mate, remember when you used to go the Bulls? Why not give it another try?”
Mate: “Hmm, for some reason I haven’t followed the club one bit since my last match 10 years ago. To be honest I was a bit sick of paying out for finals every few months”
Me: “Well you won’t have that problem any more”
Mate: “Not doing so well are they?”
Me: “No, it’s probably the worst Bradford team in my lifetime”
Mate: “Wow, that does sound appealing. Who is playing for them now?”
Me: “No idea, the club haven’t announced anything about who is playing next year”
Mate: “This is all great stuff, a marketers dream. Now before I run down to Odsal with my credit card, do they still have that “Where’s the warcry” bozo who used to ruin all the matches?”
Me: “No, there is an even bigger bozo now”
Mate: “Well, I’m convinced”

Not sure though how far "trust" in the board is a factor. Thinking about it, in our heyday, I can't say I especially "trusted the board", I didn't really factor the board much into anything. Speaking personally, trust in the board isn't a factor. If I want to go support the team then I'll go. It's a bit like the "government", if you'll forgive the loose use of that term. They are about as unprincipled, untrustworthy a bunch of lying crooks as I could probably imagine but I can't change them so just get on with stuff regardless of them.

When he used to shout "Let's hear the war cry" a few of us used to simply shout back "the war cry"

Anyway, to help get your "friends and family, who were watching the Bulls in their heyday, to come back and enjoy what is going to be a change in experience at the club", here's your free cut-out-and-keep marketing brochure.

For me it's not really a case of not trusting the Board, I have no real reason not to trust them. If nothing else, the couple of times Marc Green's been down on the terraces he seems like a thoroughly pleasant chap and from seeing him celebrate on the Coral stand when we score, seems genuinely passionate about what he’s doing and the Club.

But we’ve had that many false dawns over the last couple of years that I am very much of the opinion “I’ll believe it when I see it” nowadays. Still, I’ll be getting my season ticket when they come out.

Today's article does seem a bit oddly timed. Surely the time to be rallying up support is when the season tickets are on sale, or when squad announcements are being made?
If the poster in the other thread is correct and next week will see announcements, then it makes the timing of today's article even more strange.

Let's not overlook the possibility that this interview with Steve could have been done a while ago and the t&a have just held some bits back for a slow news day.

After all we have been through in the last two years (if not six) if anybody was thinking of packing in then this rallying call from Steve Ferret would be the final straw. Perhaps he should remember that unlike him we do not get paid to go to games, it is what we do for so called entertainment.

The Ferres article I think is about managing expectations of those who think we'll bounce back up regardless. I don't see too many on here that think like that.

Of course fans need to get behind the club Steve. You've not been here long but a fair few of us have been doing that for decades and through the most trying times for 50 years recently.

The way to get people back is to create a sense of optimism and a feel good factor. We're about to get relegated so supporters need to hear some good news.

Personally I'll still be there next season and onward as long as the club plays in Bradford. Whether I get a season ticket is more down to me having a million other things to do as well as go to the rugby so I need to be persuaded that it's a good idea. Buying one out of obligation will not work anymore.

Eddie saying "With Bradford all but relegated, is Leeda/Cas now the biggest derby in West Yorkshire" was like a dagger through the heart. Motivation right there to get this club back where it belongs.

12 month ago, Cas were wore full on the field and barely got 3k for a game against Widnes. Now look at them. We can take inspiration!

After all we've been through in the last 3 seasons, I just want a stable season financially. And promotion would be nice.

On this point, this weekend I tweeted our friend Mr Solly and got the following reply;

BS- "There is a working group currently looking at Duel Reg for next season & fan research underway on points scoring"

IMO Duel reg can't work next year between super leahue and the championship as it's effectively the same competition with the middle 8 playoff, likewise with the two leagues joining up for a playoff the points systems need to be the same surely?

Anyone in on the "fan research"?? - I tweeted him my preference so at least the [iresearch [/ihas one answer

I'm not too familiar with the bonus point system myself in practice, and if current Championship fans like it or not, but whatever they decide IMO it needs to be the same in both SL and the Championship for the same reason the competitions are far more linked now. I know the points are wiped once we get to the 3x8 stage in the middle group, but it would be odd if half the teams had been playing under one points system all year and the other half another.

It's the RFL, so they probably think that's a great idea.

The other thing that's been trialled at the moment is two refs. Selected u19's games are having them.

The Bulls trialled 2 admins, but it's not likely to catch on.