York away first game of season.Sun 18th feb 3pm

Away again, that's 3 yrs on the bounce, strange that one!

Im genuinely in shock that we've been given probably the toughest team away as our first league game. No seriously.

Does peeve me off we continue to be milked by the RFL. They should alternate teams getting a home game as their first game every year as it's always one of the biggest crowds. We've had a home game once in the last 4 years.

Be a good day though. Beautiful city is York and finished on a high last season despite having problems early on during the off-season. They got a huge crowd for the game against Toronto despite no away fans and have a good marketing/PR guy. So with us hopefully bringing a decent following, could be a very big crowd.

It was always going to be like that. I'm sure Rimmer has a little Bullman voodoo doll too.

I'll teach them to be mean to me after I lowered myself to go speak at them!!!

I know that you are not paranoid if they really are out to get you, but I now think that perhaps we are so far down the system that the RFL have bigger things to think of. If not they should have.
By the way does the fixture list have an asterisk next to it saying they are subject to changes due to Cha_lo's surprise restructure.

I expected Keighley away, but York is the other obvious one.

We'll probably get Keighley on Easter Monday. Anything to milk the Bulls supporters...

Does it say * Tribunal outcome dependent?

Keighley requested that they don't play us over Easter.

Can you actually make requests? That's bizarre. Assuming then that every club submits a wishlist, who gets to decide whose requests take priority, and are the teams also affected by any "request" also consulted? This surely means an annual avalanche of basically long lists of desired and undesirable fixtures home and away coming in from every club!

Toronto may be a special case given they either played the first half of 2018 away, or else their ground and speccies would miss half their home fixtures, but as a general rule, I don't think clubs should be allowed to "make requests".

Don't like the sound of this at all. I may not often agree with much of the RFL's fixture planning, but it should clearly be their job, and theirs alone, to TELL the clubs what the fixtures are?

We requested not to play Hull at magic weekend but we're playing Hull anyway so I guess you can put in a request it

Well I know we arent professional but draft fixtures are made in the NCL then we get chance to submit requests to move games, considering we are now run by the RFL I would imagine some sort of system is in place where they can

Hull KR away last year
HOME to Fev the year before

100% not true

Two days after my birthday! Might make this a day out to capitalize on that and my early season optimism!

Should be some good games this season. Proper traditional sides.

That's correct.

Although the request came in before the draft fixtures were sent out last Thursday.

Memory from the deep dark past says the last time we played York away first up, was 1973/74, our 1st game in div. 2 after relegation. I remember we lost as a certain Colin Forsythe murdered us. We signed him up sfter the game, when I clearly remember Albert Fearnley (coach at the time) running onto the pitch and shake his hand and walk off the pitch with him, the most blatant tapping up I'd ever seen!!
Result of that season was promotion and signing a Bradford legend, be good if lightning struck twice (even accept a defeat!!!)
I know the result and signing Forsythe was true, but not 100% sure if was first game of the season, and can't find historic fixtures anywhere. Be good to know if my memory is good or wrong if anyone can help

Colin Forsyth! The original pocket battleship! What a player! Thanks for reminding me!

What a City to visit to watch a game. Couldn't really ask for better.

That's correct, good shout and the last time we actually played them was 1986 (we lost 9-icon_cool.gif.

Gutted with this... only because I'm likely to be away that weekend!!!

Working in York I've got to see this club up close and have actually hosted some of their training sessions at my facilities whilst the whole Guildford/Council argument threatened their entire existance. Glad they came out the other side.

I can assure you they are a well organised and drilled side. James Ford has a certain style and his team will be way grittier than anything we are likely to come up against in this league.

* subject to RFL's decision to start Bradford on negative points (reason: We'll think a rule up)

I watched both games against Toronto last season on Premier Sports and they looked a decent side! Probably the best that Toronto faced anyway. And they beat them!!

Mirfieldbull is not far off with that away match at York when Colin Forsyth played such a big part in their win. It was the opening Division 1 league game of the 1974/75 season (both clubs had been promoted). Not sure of the exact score but the previous year in Division 2 was a 15-8 away win by Northern. Northern lost just 2 league games in Division 2 (at Hull and Workington) and then finished mid-table in Division 1 in 74/75.