[iPeter Hood, insisted: "Bradford is not and will not become a selling club.[/i www.independent.co.uk/sport/gene ... 05106.html 06 - Stuart Fielden - Wigan 07 - Lesley Vainikolo - Gloucester RU 08 - Shontayne Hape - Bath RU Didn't all our prized assets leave for a transfer fee? And now possibly 09 - Sam Burgess? Hmmm, seems like we''re developing some kind of habit, anybody know what is is?

[iPeter Hood, insisted: "Bradford is not and will not become a selling club.[/i www.independent.co.uk/sport/gene ... 05106.html 06 - Stuart Fielden - Wigan 07 - Lesley Vainikolo - Gloucester RU 08 - Shontayne Hape - Bath RU Didn't all our prized assets leave for a transfer fee? And now possibly 09 - Sam Burgess? Hmmm, seems like we''re developing some kind of habit, anybody know what is is?

2 players who requested to go to RU for a big payday and an easier time (for their knees) after giving this club great service - is not indicative of a selling club.

The only trend with Fielden is that of spotting when he has peaked and cashing in for a world record fee - with the knowledge that someone as good - if not better is coming through the youth system

TM, I've amended the quote for accuracy.

Easier on their knees is a load of nonsense.


Did we sell them? Were they our best players?

The answer to both is Yes..therefore we are selling our best players for money, indicating we have become a selling club.

I also find it really strange that people think Fielden had peaked at Bulls and had little to offer us because we had an other coming through the system, yet only weeks before he was the very best prop in the world and there was absolute uproar the moment it became clear we selling him. As for the trend of better coming through the youth system, who other than Sam(which is still debatable) is it that you speak of that is better or even as good as those two superstars that we sold for every bit of cash we could muster?

Because I'm struggling to see any.

We sold Fielden in what turned out - however much people stick their fingers in their ears and shout lalala - to be the deal of the century, we sold him as if he was the best forward in the world and now he would hardly command 10% of that fee. Selling Fielden, with the benefit of 100% hindsight, was a stroke of genius.

The whole world would bite our hands off for Burgess, and anyone doubting his worth/class/ability is literally someone who knows nothing, at all, about the game. I just think I'm lucky to be watching the next prodigy, best Bradford youngster I've had the privilege to watch since Hanley.

Anyone knows what a "selling club" means. Salford are a selling club in the sense that the occasional Myler is always likely to leave for a biger "buying" club before long. We have never been in that category, and just because we may (and have) sold or let players go (eg Pryce) that is not because we are a "selling club" but because there is no point at all in trying to hang on to a player who doesn't want to play for you any more (eg Newlove)

Yeah, a selling club is a club that sells their best assests for financial gain.

We might never have been in that catagory before, but it would appear to some that we have been a selling club over the past few seasons after we sold our best players.

[url=http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,12196_5420711,00.htmlBye Bye Sam?[/url

Bottom of the article

Looks like he could be on his way by the end of 2010, probably catching the same flight as Beaver to Manly.

I presume Manly will be offering a player/s swap for us releasing him early from his contract. I will be absolutely gutted to see him leave but can understand why he wants to. Losing our star player will probably disillusion a lot of Bulls fans, especially one who still has his best years ahead of him.

My only hope is that he eventually comes back and a much better player for the experience.

Thats why Beaver has signed for us, his only intention was to talk Burgess into joining the Sea Egales. BEAVER OUT.

"Selling Club"?

Did we actually receive any transfer fees for Les or Shonny, though?

We were told that Fielden, Les and Shonny wanted to leave - for better rewards elsewhere. If that is the case, and given that trying to force a contracted player to see out his contract is rarely likely to be a success, then how does that make us a "selling club"?

When the history books come to be written, I have a feeling we may see that there was rather more to the Fielden transfer (at least) than may have seemed, mind.

Regarding Sam: I always assumed he would seek to go to the NRL if or (most likely) when the opportunity presented itself. tbh, he'd be a fool not to if given the chance IMO.

Yes.

Public domain? I don't recall seeing anything much reported (unless I was having some senior moments at the time...not impossible) but I would have been pretty disappointed had we not.

It was never mentioned exact figures but from what I've been told it was 50k for Les and around 20k for Shonny.

Quote ="Adeybull"Public domain? I don't recall seeing anything much reported (unless I was having some senior moments at the time...not impossible) but I would have been pretty disappointed had we not.'" Here Adey Hape. news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_u ... 419627.stm

Quote ="Adeybull"Public domain? I don't recall seeing anything much reported (unless I was having some senior moments at the time...not impossible) but I would have been pretty disappointed had we not.'" Here Adey Hape. news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_u ... 419627.stm

Ah. Senior moment for sure, then...

Thanks guys.



From Red's figures, both quite modest, it would rather suggest that far from being a "selling club" with those two - i.e. selling your best players for megabucks to bale it out financially - we instead sought some recompense for losing players who were going to/looking to leave anyway?

But we didn't have to sell them though, but we did for financial gain.
We sold our players for money, making us a selling club in my eyes, hopefully we wont be selling Burgess though.

Does anyone know the last time we transfer listed a player?

God knows, the last person I can remember being transfer listed was Iestyn Harris at Warrington, for 1 Million. Think Murphy was something to do with them at that time.

No we didn't have to sell, but if a player wants to earn more money elsewhere and asks to leave then the club have little choice really. I think releasing Lesley and Hape was probably the right time in both cases but unfortunately we haven't properly replaced them.

Understand what you are saying. But surely, if these two were "prized assets" and WE initiated the process for financial gain, then we would have been looking for far bigger fees than Red suggests we obtained? Compare and contrast the Fielden transfer, where the sum involved WAS massive? And, when the history books come to be written, the Fielden deal was probably up there with the Newlove deal in terms of importance to the club, I suspect.

Conversely, if THEY initiated the process (and I heard from the inevitable "good source" that Hape wanted out to Union some time before he finally went) then we'd be looking more at making the best of a bad job?

While we are about it, what was the tale with Robbie Paul?

I sort of understand that players DO get transfer-listed, but in private; and the agents get busy (and richer). Suspect its more relevant to seeking to offload players deemed to be surplus or underperforming though, in which case I suspect any fees might if anything go the other way?

He was offered to Wakey at the start of 2005.

I was getting more at whether we were talking transfer fees (in either direction...) - any info?

With regard to Sam, I don't think anyone would deny him the opportunity to head to Aus.
If I was him I'd jump at the chance too.

Why did we have little choice, they had a contract to play for us and we in return pay them. They should have been made to see out their contracts and then gone onto elsewhere, otherwise they shouldn't have signed them in the first place. I don't buy into the argument that if a player doesn't want to play for you he wont give his best, most professionals player will always try their best when wanting out even if it's just for their team mates.

As for the timing, I couldn't disagree more, in Hape's case last year we were badly lacking star quality in the outside backs yet we go and sell our most dangerous back without adequate replacements already in the squad or being able to bring in a adequate replacement either.

Same with Les, we had nobody within the squad capable of replacing him suffieciently and he was still running tries in for fun and from anywhere right up to his departure from us.