There's a very real chance we could be mathematically relegated before the shield starts if the bottom teams keep picking up points the way they are, and if that happens I suspect the home and away support will collapse pretty quickly.

Do we think the master plan to save us will be revealed before that happens to keep us all interested?

Don't worry.

...be happy.

I'm pretty sure the RL have plans in place to save you

To be totally honest I'm not bothered either way.

My fear is KR go up Bulls go down and then what for the poor teams of the championship. No real support going to away games.

Think I read somewhere that the Bulls been in the championship is worth 40k to a team like Swinton. Plus another 40k from KR. Can Swinton and others survive another year without that 80k.

Exactly right.
I am sure the RFL have thought of that. HKR up. Us and one other down and replaced by Toronto + Cambrian team = Financial disaster for rest of championship.
I will be absolutely flabbergasted if we go down. My flabber will never have been so gasted if it happens.

Also can you imagine the summer bash!!!!! Would be 2000 people there at best. No point in having it.

It will be what it will be. I 100%agree with Ricky, I could care less. I'll support the club in either league if it looks like we're moving forward on and off the field.

So far the scant evidence, such as Chalmers interview, a couple of contracts signed into 2018, talk of the academy continuing (could all be bobbins but I don't have the energy to worry about that, so I'll take it on face value for the mo.) seems to point to us excisting in 2018 in whichever league we land in.

Let's be clear - If we finish bottom we should be relegated, and all our well wishing friends from Halifax and elsewhere can sleep easy knowing that pretty much 100% of Bulls fans will think we should be in c1 for 2018 all things being equal (should have been there this season but hey ho) but in rugby league not everything is equal, is it.

If sl is expanded to 13 or 14 teams, and as a result the championship is expanded, and as a result of that there needs to be no relegation but still promotion from c1, well fine. I'd argue that such whole sale changes are not aimed at us, I'd suggest it'll be aimed more for hkr/Toronto/toulouse/catalan, it would just be a lovely silver lining for us all to enjoy. And at that point, although I'd have prefered dropping down and rebuilding to come back up ourselves, I'll probably think that no one likes us anyway, so stuff what anyone else thinks and let's get on with annoying people by our very existence in the championship.

Having said all that, I think we will quite rightly start 2018 in C1. And that we will be relegated before the playoffs....remember, every minute matters...my ar$e.

Hull KR up another Super League team down - no difference

Championship was surviving without Bradford and still will - could Bradford survive on crowds if any from Oxford, Coventry etc?

I'm sure RL will change things so you don't go down - rightly or wrongly

Depends, if its catalan that drop down there's a difference.

We don't get much away support at odsal in this league other than a couple of clubs. So it wouldn't be the defining loss or revenue. Just like championship clubs survived without our away support before amd will after, like you correctly state.

Who knows what the sl and the rfl have planned, one things for sure, if there's changes its bound to upset someone.

Too little too late! You don't seriously believe the RFL has ever had a "Master Plan" do you? Unless it involves the Wolfpack playing out of Odsal

I would imagine the championship chairman including yours will be wanting, and probably voting to keep us in the championship.

As Duckman said, the Bulls fans wanted to start in L1 this year and if we finish in bottom 2, we feel we should be in L1 next year.

If we the structure changes, its not the Bulls fans that will have made them. It will be the championship club chariman likely voting for it and being put through by RFL. Won't stop fans on social.m media and on here writing rubbish about Bradford, when its their own club that is probably responsible for us unfairly staying in this league.

Let's be clear though, we were put in this league with -12 points, no players, no kit, no staff, no training ground and with a huge financial penalty; at a time when signing players would be almost impossible anyway, three weeks before the season started by the RFL. Against the will of pretty much all bulls fans who wanted to start in the lower league anyway.

If these idiots running the RFL want to change the rules to preserve their position (like they have done exempting the 1st place winner from the promotion playoffs in Champ 1, to absolutely ensure that Toronto deffo go up) or the financial position of the game (or the Championship) they can do. It's their competition after all. IMO It's all looking a little shady and seedy though.

But in the case of Bradford this season, this [uWAS [/uall machinations of the RFL; from choosing the owners, the punishment, setting us up to fail from the get-go, pretty much everything. If they're going to keep us in this league, rightly or wrongly, I daresay they couldn't give two hoots what the fans think anyway.

How can it be 40k a year to other teams. Let's say for arguments sake Bulls take 1000 fans, which I would say some games its definitely less than that, at say £18 or less a time, falls a long way short of 40k

I don't think we are as valuable as what we think, certainly be missed, but not as much as we think

Anyway we won't be getting relegated, Mr Wood will make sure of that

Well, some late changes to the structure started today. An rfl tweet about there being no promotion playoff final from c1 this year like last year, instead the team finishing 1st goes up automatically without the risk of losing the one off game..... That's handy for Toronto.

Is there another sport on the planet that changes the competition rules part way through a season?

was always gonna be like that 2nd to 5th play off for the other promotion place its no secret or conspiracy by rfl

To be fair mate think me and you Have had same views throughout

I've not seen the tweet in question, but the structure at the start of the season for C1 was announced as...

Top 8 / Bottom 8 split part way through season.

Bottom 8 play another 7 games each, after which the "top" 4 of those have a "Shield" competition of Semi Finals and Final.

Top 8 play another 7 games each, after which the 1st place team gets promoted. 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th have a playoff (Semi Finals & Final), the winner of which also gains promotion.

Has that changed?

Wakey start playing above the rubbish they are and now you start piping up. If they were as rubbish as normal you wouldn't be on here so head back in your hole as it won't be long before wakey are clinging on by edge of teeth again. Some of your fans are carrying on like you are champions never be there hope it comes crashing down

Bar Sheffield, all the bottom eight have a similar record. It's not inconceivable (especially with reinforcements) that the Bulls could beat them all, allied with a win or two in the remaining regular league games, and the entirely possible scenario of one of the teams above the bottom two going into free fall, they could stay up easily.

Not saying that will happen, but staying up would not be a sporting miracle. Lose against Swinton and I'd say would be miracle territory.

My god SOME bulls fans think they have a Devine right of top flight rugby.
If you stay up fine but if you go down and then the rfl save you that is wrong.
Look at football with rangers,they broke the rules and paid the price,just because they have a lot of fans they didn't get saved.
If hull kr go up maybe Leigh or Widnes may come down and both them bring very good followings so the championship would survive.
This whole "the game needs us" thing from some Bulls fans is starting to get a few fans backs up.
Yes you have a good fan base but it don't mean the rules should get changed

How many times does this thread say bulls fans wanted to stat in L1? I know it is difficult, I have been to Fev once, but try and keep up and get your facts right

No thsts how ut still is

That's why I said SOME Bulls fans,,,if you go down and the rfl save you what will you view be then??