Anybody would think you'd been hard done to the way your carrying on, it's not anybodys fault that you went into administration. If youd have thought a bit more forward and worked out a deal before hand to avoid potential slip ups, like Bulls have then you wouldnt be feeling so envious and angry.

But will they act for other clubs hit by this? How much money have the RFL got? The Bulls chairman said the club didnt need to sell the stadium, if they hadnt the club would continue as normal and still own the lease/ground delete as apropiate at the time...so he must be lying then if they did need the money from the RFL to survive.

The club went into adminstration because the planning for the stadium got refered to the government and stopped a payment by the developers then the then chief exec asked the RFL odsal (as it's now called) for a loan and got refused. If the RFL had offered to buy our ground we wouldnt have gone into adminstration!! hence the slightly aggrieved wakefield supporters....

I can understand your frustrations but let's face it the RFL have helped my team Hull FC out in the past...because like it or not we are considered a big club as we have a large fanbase (irrespective of the fact we have performed poorly since 2006). The same goes for the Bulls, when they were last successful in the mid part of the last decade they averaged 15k attendances....if they can become a competitive force once more and they attract even more fans back than they already have, then in my opinion this is a sound investment and makes good business sense.

And please don't accuse me of being another of those arrogant Hull FC fans who think they have a divine right to be at the top, I know there have been plenty of those on here!

I agree, it was our own fault that we went into Administration and to be fair its what we deserved but let me ask you a simple question.

If the RFL had not bought the lease and effectively given you a substantial loan would you have had to go into Administration like we did ?

And this is why the RFL are corrupt, how the (guesstheword) are we supposed to stand a chance?

I'm all right Jack, who cares about Wakey and their Tin Pot ground? Why should they get special treatment? They aren't one of the RFL's special clubs, nah they can just rot and die for all we care. This sport stinks.

Well, I’m not frustrated in the slightest, I understand why the RFL are coming to Bradford’s aid, however, I still don’t see why they’ve taken the lease on?

Why not just bung ‘em some money ala Crusaders?

By becoming Bradford landlords they (The RFL) have gifted the club with a gold-plated licence having become entwined in a partnership that could last for infinity.

People constantly have a pop at Wakefield for the state of their ground, but when you look at Bradford, for all their recent past glories, where’s the investment been in Odsal?

I’ve no idea how much Bradford will be paying the RFL each year, nor who will be picking up the maintenance cost, but I’m not sure about a sound investment. Those heady days of Bullmania are now well down the track, with new kids on the block.

I really detest this big club arrogance.
Trinity were a big club in my younger days.
What is more they have the potential to be so again.

But we haven't been given a loan and there has been no talk of Bulls going into administration. We sold some of our assets, to ensure and secure at least some stability and future for the club. We haven't been given or handed anything by the RFL and certainly not received any preferential treatment, it was purely and simply a business deal, instigated by us and negotiated by both parties.

You and Cas need to stop feeling sorry for yourselves and stop crying.

The fact that NOTHING will be done angers me even more. I hope we get our new stadium, get attendances of 10,000+ and win the Challenge Cup or Super League one day, and look back and say we did it the hard way, not by being mollycoddled by the sports Governing body.

It's just becoming too farcical, you couldn't even make some of this stuff up anymore, what next? I have no idea.

To the poster above, you clearly have received preferential treatment, if you think otherwise then you are deluded my friend.

Please tell me, how?

But if you sold the RFL the lease and received a substantial sum and then pay rent how is that not a loan - you can call it what you want but its as some have said a "sell and leaseback" which is in effect a loan.

How were you going to pay the HMRC on the Image Rights issue without the RFL money or selling your assets as you put it ? If you are a well run club, and I'm not saying you aren't why did you have to sell the lease - clearly you needed some working capital over and above your generated income, season ticket sales and the SKY money ?

Nothing wrong at all with what you have done but it would be better if is was spelt out what has happened rather than the bullcrap of safeguarging an historic stadium, fighting off developers etc.

Spot on it is a loan. Also why have they had to go to RFL to get one ? I have heard they are over their heads in debt, they have exhausted all their commercial avenues of lending and RFL was the last resort. Even with the odsal deal I doubt if it will be enough to stave off their problems if the image rights issue turns out bad for them.

We have been their ourselves and know what its like so lets hope if they go bust they can come out of it for the better just like we did.

How is it a loan? as far as I was aware, a loan is where you borrow something and then pay it back. We haven't borrowed anything and the RFL haven't loaned us anything. We have sold something, and agreed to remain at the site as paying tenants, so no, it is not a loan in practice or effect. It is you that is calling it whatever you want to call it.

We probably weren't going to, so that is why we have moved to secure some extra funds in the form of the sale of the ground lease, so we don't take a hit financially. What RFL money? You sound like you believe that the RFL have just handed us money for nothing, the RFL now own the lease that we previously did and we are now paying them rent to remain there. It was a sale, not a loan.

There isn't anything wrong with what we have done, nor is there anything wrong with what the RFL have done either. Maybe, just maybe the RFL have some interest in the Odsal site for future development of their own and so it isn't in the hands of private developers that don't have the interest of RL at heart.

The RFL have given you money in return for the lease and you pay them rent.

Call it what you want but its a Loan.

No, we have offered the sale of the lease, they paid cash for it.

That's a sale.

not from what was on radio leeds this morning at 7-15, the RFL spokesman clearly stated that it purchased Odsal from the club and not from the council as I was lead to believed.
Hood was also like a dog with two dicks as he stated that it made the club stable


Wakefield also got a mention about its ground by the RFL briefly as to make a point that they had looked into it as well

And that lends to preferential treatment how exactly?

The RFL have bought your ground from Bulls who will then use the money received to give them back in rent and pocket the rest, that is essentially a remortgage - which is a type of loan.

let me see

did the bulls contact Wonga .com no the ask the RFL for a loan and got the RFL discided to help you lot from admin by buying the lease

watch the spend spree begin



oh and not to mention the conflict of interest when it comes to the next franchise

So its a "Sale and Leasback" which is just like a loan.

Look call it what you will but the rest of us will call it a loan.

Admin, were we in admin? Where have you seen that disclosed that we were in admin or going to go into admin? Can you find me that info?

But buying something is different from loaning something. Jee whizz

The Bulls have made a long term commitment to pay a higher rent, in return for a short term cash injection; if they don't improve their revenue streams dramatically to meet the higher rent costs, they'll be screwed all over again, but with no lease to sweat for what would be the third time.

The Bulls fans who are choosing to be smug and combative about this should keep their powder dry; what they've done is exactly what Southern Cross did on a much bigger scale, and that business is now in the process of being picked apart by vultures.

Whatever happens, by virtue of its dishonesty and contempt shown for other stakeholders, the RFL has further diminished its own credibility and damaged what little goodwill remained towards it from RL fans outside of Odslum, who will of course be their biggest supporters.

I won't I will call it a handout

Yes, it's a sale and leaseback, which is a..wait for it....a sale and leaseback.

A loan is a loan, not a sale and leaseback.

Deary me today.

Call it a loan if you wan't At no point or time has any of the participating parties mentioned a loan, that's only being made up by fans that seem angry and bitter towards the RFL and Bradford Bulls.


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