Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 6:27 am  

Huddersfield1895 wrote:

I can't see any new owner going and the first thing he has to do is spend millions on Odsal,

On what? Last time I went in 2019 10,256 fans were comfortably and safely accommodated in the ground, as the TV cameras rolled on a fantastic game.

Since then some idiots kicked the toilets in. What do they need to spend these £Millions on?

"BRADFORD Bulls have announced they will leave their long-standing Odsal home at the end of the current season and move to Dewsbury Rams’ Tetley’s Stadium.The club have signed a two-year deal to play at their Championship neighbours while they seek to develop a new ground in Bradford. The decision has been made due to the high financial costs of remaining at Odsal"

This was their farewell note

They left because of the cost of the stadium to them and now Mr Wood has announced he can budget for the maintenance. The only other issue is the rent isn't it?

Maybe (more informed commentator welcome) a deal has been done with Bradford council on a rent reduction, which Wood and the council is keeping confidential???

Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 8:21 am  

Donnyman wrote:

On what? Last time I went in 2019 10,256 fans were comfortably and safely accommodated in the ground, as the TV cameras rolled on a fantastic game.

Since then some idiots kicked the toilets in. What do they need to spend these £Millions on?

"BRADFORD Bulls have announced they will leave their long-standing Odsal home at the end of the current season and move to Dewsbury Rams’ Tetley’s Stadium.The club have signed a two-year deal to play at their Championship neighbours while they seek to develop a new ground in Bradford. The decision has been made due to the high financial costs of remaining at Odsal"

This was their farewell note

They left because of the cost of the stadium to them and now Mr Wood has announced he can budget for the maintenance. The only other issue is the rent isn't it?

Maybe (more informed commentator welcome) a deal has been done with Bradford council on a rent reduction, which Wood and the council is keeping confidential???

The RFL were paying the lease so the bulls don't have that expense so where is this extra money to going to come from as they will have to spend loads to get a safety certificate before they can play a home game, So where is this extra money coming from that they didn't have before?

Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 8:43 am  

Huddersfield1895 wrote:

The RFL were paying the lease so the bulls don't have that expense so where is this extra money to going to come from as they will have to spend loads to get a safety certificate before they can play a home game, So where is this extra money coming from that they didn't have before?

I thought they had a safety certificate before they went to Dewsbury in protest at the council rates bill????

I appreciate the question but the fact is I aren't an accountant who has run the RFL and now runs the Bradford Bulls.

Nor am I privvy to the Bradford bulls decision to leave Bradford for two years and pay no rent at all to the council and let said council stew in Bulls Ratepayer fans complaining.

All I can go on is said highly experienced RL administrator and accountant telling people publicly that he can make the books balance now. I can only explain that as a deal with the council. This gets Bulls back in Bradford, voters happy with the council, money back into the council rates account albeit less than before and local businesses having good income as Bulls fans swell the takings on matchdays.

So the extra money doesn't come from anywhere, it's likely the council dropping the rent that makes going back "tenable". Now I have not seen any headline saying "Council drop Bulls rent" and can only guess the council and the Bulls have agreed to keep it private. This isn't BTW a conspiracy theory, it's what the Bulls moved to Dewsbury for to force the councils hand IIRC corrections welcome..

Anyway just flicked open an RL yearbook....Huddersfield.v.Bradford 8,297 fans .......Bradford.v.Huddersfield 11,368 fans..... Hudderfiield.v.Catalans 4,383.............

Again never spoke to Ken Davey, but I'd guess he wants Bulls back in Superleague?

Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 8:53 am  

Donnyman wrote:

I thought they had a safety certificate before they went to Dewsbury in protest at the council rates bill????

I appreciate the question but the fact is I aren't an accountant who has run the RFL and now runs the Bradford Bulls.

Nor am I privvy to the Bradford bulls decision to leave Bradford for two years and pay no rent at all to the council and let said council stew in Bulls Ratepayer fans complaining.

All I can go on is said highly experienced RL administrator and accountant telling people publicly that he can make the books balance now. I can only explain that as a deal with the council. This gets Bulls back in Bradford, voters happy with the council, money back into the council rates account albeit less than before and local businesses having good income as Bulls fans swell the takings on matchdays.

So the extra money doesn't come from anywhere, it's likely the council dropping the rent that makes going back "tenable". Now I have not seen any headline saying "Council drop Bulls rent" and can only guess the council and the Bulls have agreed to keep it private. This isn't BTW a conspiracy theory, it's what the Bulls moved to Dewsbury for to force the councils hand IIRC corrections welcome..

Anyway just flicked open an RL yearbook....Huddersfield.v.Bradford 8,297 fans .......Bradford.v.Huddersfield 11,368 fans..... Hudderfiield.v.Catalans 4,383.............

Again never spoke to Ken Davey, but I'd guess he wants Bulls back in Superleague?

I like most fans would like the Bulls to return to Odsal, and Super League earned on merit and not gifted, but I'm puzzled by where the money will come from that wasn't there before for returning to Odsal

Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 12:08 pm  

Huddersfield1895 wrote:

I like most fans would like the Bulls to return to Odsal, and Super League earned on merit and not gifted, but I'm puzzled by where the money will come from that wasn't there before for returning to Odsal

This seems to be the definitive statement on leaving Odsal.............

"Announcing the groundshare agreement earlier this month, Chalmers blamed the cost of rates, rent and maintenance for the decision to leave Odsal - Bradford's home for 85 years". So these were the issues......Here's an old news story.......

The Rugby Football League have bought Odsal Stadium from the Bradford Bulls and will rent it back to them.The game's governing body say they have paid an undisclosed sum to add the famous Yorkshire ground to their property portfolio, with the Bulls becoming tenants of the home they have occupied since 1934.. Bradford chairman Peter Hood confirmed that his club had made the initial approach to the RFL and hailed the announcement as 'excellent news'.

Further information and analysis would be welcome from any knowledgable fan, all I can recall is Bulls feeling stung on the rent and rates and pulling out of the City in protest. So it could be Nigel Wood has put together a financial plan for Bulls to be able to operate in Superleague from Odsal that includes much lower levels of rent and rates charges from the RFL and the council?

I appreciate your desire for Bulls to actually win promotion, I also appreciate the desire of 9 big Superleague clubs to just hoist them back into Superleague 2022 so they can get the income from the Bulls fanbase to mitigate the lower TV deal. But would they do this? maybe Derek Beaumont can comment??

Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 6:21 pm  

Donnyman wrote:

This seems to be the definitive statement on leaving Odsal.............

"Announcing the groundshare agreement earlier this month, Chalmers blamed the cost of rates, rent and maintenance for the decision to leave Odsal - Bradford's home for 85 years". So these were the issues......Here's an old news story.......

The Rugby Football League have bought Odsal Stadium from the Bradford Bulls and will rent it back to them.The game's governing body say they have paid an undisclosed sum to add the famous Yorkshire ground to their property portfolio, with the Bulls becoming tenants of the home they have occupied since 1934.. Bradford chairman Peter Hood confirmed that his club had made the initial approach to the RFL and hailed the announcement as 'excellent news'.

Further information and analysis would be welcome from any knowledgable fan, all I can recall is Bulls feeling stung on the rent and rates and pulling out of the City in protest. So it could be Nigel Wood has put together a financial plan for Bulls to be able to operate in Superleague from Odsal that includes much lower levels of rent and rates charges from the RFL and the council?

I appreciate your desire for Bulls to actually win promotion, I also appreciate the desire of 9 big Superleague clubs to just hoist them back into Superleague 2022 so they can get the income from the Bulls fanbase to mitigate the lower TV deal. But would they do this? maybe Derek Beaumont can comment??

So the obvious questions are will the RFL reduce the rent?
Will the council reduce the rates?
Maintenance costs never reduce they only go up.
I note the quote " SO IT COULD BE NIGEL WOOD HAS PUT TOGETHER FINANCIAL PLAN FOR BUL TO BE ABLE TO OPERATE IN SUPER LEAGUE FROM ODSAL THAT INCLUDES MUCH LOWER LEVELS OF RENT AND RATES FROM THE RFL AND THE COUNCIL" So Mr Wood hopes that the RFL might reduce the rate,but the RFL is penurious at the moment for obvious reasons, and zero chance of the council reducing rates and this seems to hiang on a return to Super League

Re: Odsal : Thu May 13, 2021 8:45 pm  

Donnyman wrote:

This seems to be the definitive statement on leaving Odsal.............

"Announcing the groundshare agreement earlier this month, Chalmers blamed the cost of rates, rent and maintenance for the decision to leave Odsal - Bradford's home for 85 years". So these were the issues......Here's an old news story.......

The Rugby Football League have bought Odsal Stadium from the Bradford Bulls and will rent it back to them.The game's governing body say they have paid an undisclosed sum to add the famous Yorkshire ground to their property portfolio, with the Bulls becoming tenants of the home they have occupied since 1934.. Bradford chairman Peter Hood confirmed that his club had made the initial approach to the RFL and hailed the announcement as 'excellent news'.

Further information and analysis would be welcome from any knowledgable fan, all I can recall is Bulls feeling stung on the rent and rates and pulling out of the City in protest. So it could be Nigel Wood has put together a financial plan for Bulls to be able to operate in Superleague from Odsal that includes much lower levels of rent and rates charges from the RFL and the council?

I appreciate your desire for Bulls to actually win promotion, I also appreciate the desire of 9 big Superleague clubs to just hoist them back into Superleague 2022 so they can get the income from the Bulls fanbase to mitigate the lower TV deal. But would they do this? maybe Derek Beaumont can comment??

Except most of it is bull. Bradford were tenants long before the RFL became involved and the RFL DID NOT buy Odsal, but did buy the (head) lease.

The rateable value (and hence business rates payable) is not set by the Council but by the Valuation Office Agency (an arm of HM Revenue and Customs) and was last revalued in April 2017.

Re: Odsal : Fri May 14, 2021 7:03 am  

Massive gamble to move back to a archaic ground. Why not cut losses and look at planning a new ground as lots of others have done instead of pouring money into money pit ground that will never be a modern ground.

Re: Odsal : Fri May 14, 2021 7:05 am  

Many thanks to Mr. Dog and Mr. Huddersfield 1895......

It will be interesting to see how this saga goes. It has been suggested that Bulls will need a "money man" benefactor something they haven't really had, but it doesn't appear Mr, Sawyer is that man. Having said that the club was highly successful for many years without one.

Re: Odsal : Fri May 14, 2021 7:12 am  

Leyther14 wrote:

Massive gamble to move back to a archaic ground. Why not cut losses and look at planning a new ground as lots of others have done instead of pouring money into money pit ground that will never be a modern ground.

Spot on, but they have tried this avenue that at times needs help from the local council, or somewhere. Wakefield and Cas have spent many years hamstrung without help from their council. Where Bradford council were encouraged to come in was to sell Odsal (it's apparently very valuable land) and use part of the money to build a ground across the road on the land where the council sports centre is.

It seemed to make great sense, especially as it may not have burdened Bradford ratepayers, but again nothing happened and it's puzzling to understand why?