The letter does like a desperate plee on one side, which I can understand, but, on the otherside a fancy do for the corp people. Maybe not the best of PR, no doubt it was written well before the wire match and posted last Thursday/Friday.

Given the fact that the economy is still well in the sh*t, they can't really jack up the price for memberships. So, the board have to go out there and fetch the money in from other sources, not to rely on the supporters. Its time they went out to every business in the area and offered them bulk deals, specials and any other incentives to get the money in.

I suspect if the team had been well inside the top 8, the season ticket could have rose by £10/£20 and we all wouldnt be having this conversation.

Evidence from City suggests that, if it's cheap enough, people will still put their hands in their pocket.

The fact that performances haven't been that great doesn't disguise the fact that £60 for 13 games of top level sport is good value for money - if after 4 seasons of mediocre 4th level football City can still get 9000 people to part with £150 for a "cheap" season ticket for the 5th it shouldn't be that hard for decent numbers to renew at Odsal.

I agree. If the season tickets stay the same price for next year, I'd not be surprised to see a similar number of takers.

I think one plank of the strategy has to be to try to convince the waverers what fantastic value the Membership is? After all, we have had a handful of games at Odsal that together were easily worth the Membership cost. So even if many of the rest were dire, they did not cost folk anything other than a bit of time? I guess the tactic of trying to shame some into renewing by labelling them Glory Supporters might work with some, but for many a different approach will be needed.

The gist of the club's marketing strategy looks to be to recognise that the best salesmen for the Memberships are the existing members? Which is why Sunday's debacle was so especially depressing. An honourable loss after putting up a hell of a fight would have carried on the "on the mend" feeling from the previous game. As it is, the letter's release could hardly have come at a worse time.

I love this emphases on "true" fans! this is my 30th year supporting this club, i have traveled around a lot of rl grounds all over the country over the years, spending god knows how much money in the process, purchasing replica shirts and what not! Yet because i have chosen not to go away any more or don't go to as many games at home a season, mostly due to having a young family, I'm lambasted for not being a "proper" or "real" fan, even though I'm a season ticket holder!

Its getting beyond a joke now, all i can say it must be kids complaining about it, oh to be young again, when i only had to worry about going to watch Bradford and how much ale i could consume on a weekend!

If you think its bad now just ask Ron Willey and David Hobbs how bad it was at Odsal in the late 80's early 90's! (Probably be a bit hard to ask Ron now though)

There is no denying that it is exceptional value and I would say it was a safe bet that everyone on here is likely to renew. But it's not "us" that is the problem, most of "us" have bought tickets when they were £150 and still would. Its the others, its the ones who bought last year because it was cheap, went to a few games, realised it was s**t and didn't bother coming back. They will not renew this year. Not a chance. And I know at least two who fall into this category.

So your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to persuade those people that they should after all renew.

This post will self-destruct in ten seconds...

After persuading them to buy this year, I am keeping well away from them this year. I like my bits where they are thanks....

What I would do is the following: 11k+ pledges @£50. 10k pledges @£60. 9k pledges @£70. 8k @£80 etc . . . . .

That's an interesting idea...

I have to admit I got really annoyed with the tone of the letter sent out today. How many times are the club going to play this "we really need the fans to turn out" speech. Like we don't know???

The thing is (and this is hard for me to say this as i've always tried to be positive about the future of the Bulls) when is the club itself going to take responsibility for what has happened over the last 5 years?

We've all still been here, we've gone and worked hard for our money and loyally spent it on season tickets/entrance in, replica shirts, food/drink, programmes and club social events, even at a time when it is finacially tough for a lot of us. Where is our reward?

I don't expect to win everything like the glory days, it's just not going to happen anymore. But i do expect that those whose wages we contribute towards to show a bit of pride and respect for the shirt they wear and club/supporters they represent.

I will pledge again though as I love the club. But again I ask when will those responsible for the safeguarding of what was once branded "the peoples team" start taking repsonsibility for accountablity for their own actions rather than sending out guilt letters???

I would love to pledge again if its the same or a little bit more or even a little bit less as someone else pointed out earlier. I know for sure several people that will not be going again next year though and I will find it hard to encourage andone to go.

I for one will be getting a season ticket. I am a Bulls fan, not a if we win games im a fan. Next season is a new season and will be a clean slate.

If we make the playoffs it will help the scheme a lot but unlikely right now.

i'll probably pledge again, i've been collecting the teamcard points from the associates so will get a bit of a discount.

At £60 a go I'd definately get my three again, and I'd possibly convince another couple who missed out this year.
I honestly think most who paid the £60 this would do so again next year.
As has been pointed out it's the newbies we need to look at, advertise in local press, possibly a long shot but why not concentrate on the asian community.

I'll defo be renewing mine £60 is a steel, I took 3 friends who'd never even watched a rugby league game before to the Leeds game over easter and they loved it. Two of them signed up the following game, and thought they were getting a bargin even halfway through the season (They even bought shirts and we've started going to away games too). The thrid couldn't sign up because she was a manchester united season ticket holder at £720 for the season (pmsl). Kind of put things into perspective.

I feel dreadfully sorry for the club because they've worked very hard to produce deals that make people stand up and take notice. The guys on the pitch have a lot to answer for because so much of the hard work the club and fans have achieved in galvanising support beyond our hardcore base will have been undermined by woeful performances.

As has been said countless times above, we the hardcore recognise that poor Rugby at these prices is still, just about, value for money. But I fail to see how I could persuade the newbies to have one next year after the trash they've witnessed. As I say I think that's a huge shame for the people brave enough to launch a wonderful scheme in the first place.

Do we think a pledge system will be used again from the Hull KR game onwards?

Im sure I was stood next to you a few weeks back.

It's bee a bad season but for £60, I think we have had 'value for money'.

The teams performance overall has been poor but £60 is the equivalent of just over 3 home games, lets not forget the Halifax game was a freebie as well.

And to those that keep stating "the real fans would buy tickets as £200" etc..... It's not as simple as that.

Before marriage and kids I did purchase tickets at that price but since I had to change my lifestyle to suit my family i've not been able to buy season tickets, just the odd game. The cheap membership offer meant I could now experience the season in full, for which I'm grateful.

Even with the dross results, I'm still happy with the £60 ticket offer and would do so again. To purchase for a second year must rule out the comments regarding "Glory Supporters" as, well, how do I put this..... We're not very good at the mo!

Yes it has been a bad season and I am upset, to put it mildly, with the team.

Having said which, anyone who claims they haven't had at least £60-worth of value out of the ticket must be from another planet.

You can say that the season as a whole has been a massive disappointment, which it has, but there has been plenty of good rugby (including by the opposition on occasions) and some good and some very enjoyable days out were had. Those may in the final analysis not count for much as we didn't make the playoffs, but that sad fact doesn't alter the value you got from (for example) the Huddersfield game, and several others.

Sure, the good days were outnumbered, but here that is not the issue. The issue is whether you got value for £60 and I am not even prepared to take seriously the comments of any person who claims they didn't.

Value for money is a pretty nebulous term though really. If your objective is to see rugby played for the minimum outlay then it's value for money. If it's feel good by association then you might be feeling a little robbed. Most of us fall somewhere between the two rather than one end or the other.

Don't think anyone on this thread had said that £60 for a season ticket isn't good value. People have purely said that there will be plenty who aren't bothered about renewing next year.

I talked my parents into buying one each. They're the ones who got me watching Bradford back in the Northern days. They haven't really watched them over the last few seasons. For one reason or another, they only ended up going to one game this year, mainly due to them going to their caravan on a weekend. They say they won't bother next year.

I also have spoken to some football fans who bought season tickets. They said they definitely had their monies worth but aren't bothered about doing it again next year. They enjoyed the boozing part of the day but found the matches a little flat. After the 1st few games they now stay in the pub and don't bother going.

All I'm saying is that I know plenty of people who won't be renewing, but not because they're not good value. I only hope that there are plenty of people who felt that they missed out by not buying one this year but can't wait for a similar scheme next year. If not, we might struggle to hit similar numbers.

In hindsight, should have done this deal when we were awesome, spread the word further and wider. Sure, we'd have picked up more fair-weather friends but we'd now have more foulweather ones too.

Well, we might struggle, and the pessimists may for once be right, but I again don't think so.

I said as soon as the last scheme was launched that it would work, and it did - more than. It is because enough people see the value, and it is cheap for top class sport. Which is what SL is, even if we at times may not be the leading exponents of it.

I also pointed out that plenty of people will reinvest despite the team being gash, since experience (in the local form of Bradford City, and their outstanding attendances) should have convinced everyone that pitch your season tickets at the right cheap level, and they will come. Being perennial easybeats and relegation flirters hasn't killed City's season ticket sales, so to me, it is illogical to think the opposite would happen at Odsal. Especially since we sold 11K tickets on the back of being a much less entertaining team than we have, overall, been this season, despite not finishing in a much different position.