Bradford Bulls home crowds at Odsal are up 11.9%

Just think if we were 5/5 what are crowds would be.

Two lots of Healthy East Yorkshire Support have gone a long way to any increase

Yes but the fact is that the crowds are up. So when we start picking up points after points, we should have a 12K average.

Good point, but don't forget to add the annual dross Huddersfield following into that equation.

I can't see Catalans, Celtic or Harlequins fans making up nearly 50% of the crowd as with Hull & HKR.

The average is skewed with good travelling support and will be even more so after the Leeds game.

I feel the Hudds crowd is often under estimated. Many of their fans take position on the popular side.
But yes, not as many as either of the Hull teams.

I sometimes despair at people's knee-jerk urge to kick out at any positive, or reach for the bucket of icy water.

The fact is that, for once, we have had weather for our opening few games that has been less than apocalyptic, and this has made a difference. And given our start to the season, our fans have done a decent job of turning out. Of course if we'd been 5/5 the gates would have been even more. You don't need to be a rocket scientist for that one.

The fact that we have played Hull and Hull KR is irrelevant, because they always do bring a decent amount of support, and only did this year what they would do any year. In fact, against Hull, if anything it was a slightly more attractive fixture than at other times due to them being league leaders, so a few extra could have been anticipated on both home and away fans, as long as the weather was kind, which it was.

Huddersfield brought very, very few, as sadly seems the norm, but again, they brought very few last year so I don't see the relevance, but if it is relevant that the Hull clubs brought a lot, why isn't it equally relevant that Huddersfield didn't?

True, but HKR brought 270,000 fans, so that balances it out nicely.

It isn't a "knee jerk urge" at all.
I am merely stating fact.
If anything my postings generally are of a positive inclination.

If our first 3 home games had been Catalan, Harlequins and Celtic, with similar results, the title of the thread would have been something along the lines of "Bulls Average Lowest Since SL Began"

Certainly with the Hull game, the away support was soley responsible for keeping the gate 5 figure.

If you ask me, it's about time other clubs started swelling our gates as we have done for other SL clubs for years.

But so do KR fans. I've a tendency to stand over on the Rooley Lane end when these two come to town and KR fans are always vastly more on the pop side than Hudds fans. They usually fill the section all the way down where as Hudds tend to only fill about a 1/3

I must say that, yes it's nice to see an increase in crowds, however I agree with other posters who point out that having both Hull clubs visit will have skewd the figures slightly.

It seems to have been consigned to the memory hole that just a few years ago we were the opposition for most other SL clubs' rrecord attendances in the summer era. We know people will go given the right circumstances.

Let's look at the same fixtures for the teams we've played so far this year, see what we got last year and see if there up or down. That's a true indication of whether crowds are changing

I'd be interested to see the results

[code 2009 2008

KR 12,141 --> 9,741 & 10,353
HG 10,186 --> 10,124
FC 11,327 --> 9,511 & 9,181[/code

Watch this thread go dead quiet now...

It matters because you are speaking BULLSH!T. you can talk down Huddersfield as much as you want. But you are lying either that or you had left before the end of the game and did not see over 1000 Giants fans applauding our team at the end after getting our first win at Bradford in 40 years. It was the biggest following we had taken to Bradford in years and was our biggest away support of the season.

But dont worry i am sure if you keep putting down your rivals you can make yourself feel better particularly as you are a team on the way down whilst we are a team on the way up.

Good that they're up from last year.
However, there are other circumstances to consider
1. Weather
2. Relative success of the opponents

A useful comparison would be % of each set of supporters for those fixtures

The Hull game especially would be heavily skewed
I'd guesstimate a 70-30 split this year, 2008 probably nearer 90-10.

We also need to take into account, inter alia...

1. The state of the traffic
2. The state of the nation
3. Whether City were at home
4. Whether City were playing crap or not
5. The average number of speccies with a lurgy
6. The price of beer
7. The price of coal
8. What was on TV at the time
9. What was in the oven at the time
10.The average strength of hangovers being suffered
11.The number of speccies whose kids were playing sports that day
12.The number of speccies whose kids had nicked the car that day
.
.
.

3121.How many speccies could not go cos they did not have any clean underwear
3122. How many speccies could not go cos they had no underwear
3123. How many speccies were otherwise engaged removing someone else's underwear
3124. How many speccies were otherwise engaged in wearing someone else's underwear
.
.
.

Well come on now!

I am merely trying to point out that a higher %age of away fans have swelled our gates this year v's last

And the weather...as you said?

Look, your argument is very probably valid, and yes the commendable increase in FC and HKR fans was clear for all to ses. But my point is do we really need to spend so much time trying to find and emphasise the negatives in everything? Hell, its even afflicted a normally positive guy like you now! This is surely the corrosive effect of the Negative Tendency?

I'm just glad that its extra funds in the club's coffers.

Let's check out your plucked-out-of-thin-air "statistics", then.
Games vs Hull FC
22 Jun 2008 9,511 of which 90% Bulls = 8560
17 Aug 2008 9,181 of which 90% Bulls = 8262
15 Mar 2009 11,327 of which 70% Bulls = 7929

So you've conclusively proved, based on your overwhelmingly accurate straw man percentages, that the Bulls stayed away in droves. Clearly. The trend is an earthwards plummet. It's obvious. OK? And as all Hull fans will confirm, they brought only a measly 900 or so to each game last year. Agreed? But a mysterious extra 2,500 materialized this year. Wow, a 277% increase! QED.

But no, let's press on with the KR games. Bets to be sure, eh?

Games vs Hull KR
29 Jun 2008 9,741 (8766)
25 Aug 2008 10,353 (9317)
15 Feb 2009 12,141 (849icon_cool.gif

And yes, I am sure KR only brought 900-odd fans each game last year too. They would, I'm sure, agree with your figure. Whereas a mysterious extra 2,500 materialized this year. Bloody hell. A 250% increase!

So yes, you've conclusively proved, based on your overwhelmingly accurate straw man percentages, that the Bulls stayed away in droves, and the opposition fans miraculously made hugely unlikely increases in away support. It's so obvious. Our trend is an earthwards plummet. It's confirmed and indisputable.

Well, apart from the second game, that is, where our gate went up. No doubt, though, this was because on [ithat [/iday 30% of Hull KR fans attended, upping their previous 10% effort so as to provide you with some ammunition.

Games vs Huddersfield
16 Feb 2008 10,124
27 Feb 2009 10,186

Presumably these were ALL Hull fans so you've also established that [ino[/i Bulls fans went to either game. Seems accurate enough to me.

Look, they're decent enough gates. End of. The Hull games show an obvious increase, and yes some of it is due to some extra fans from Hull. WTF point is there to be made here? And WTF is the point of this sort of introverted, wrist-slitting navel gazing?

OK, OK. Every fscker in the ground was from Hull. They're [iall[/i from Hull. That do? Even for the Huddersfield match. THEY WERE ALL FROM HULL. Why, I'm from Hull, I now realise. The only speccies we ever get are [iall[/i from Hull. Happy now?

What do Treble Champs and Quadruple Wooden Spooners have in common? They each have only one way they can go...

Absolutely accept that. I know how successful you were in the SL era and how bad we used to be. I just get annoyed when LYING posts are put on about our fans wghen we took a very good following 4 figure support to yours this season.

Why does anyone get so hung up about numbers of away supporters?

I care about the amount of Bulls speccies because success on the pitch is inextricably linked with amount of support and vice versa, also the atmosphere is better playing away when there is a significant Bulls presence in the stands (I tend to see more games away because I now live the "wrong" side of the Pennines) ... do I really care that the Giants bring 100, 1,000 or 10,000 speccies to Odsal ... I'm rather thankful they don't bring huge numbers (makes getting away at the end of the game easier!!)

That NT is extremely contagious you know



I am not disputing for one second that the rise isn't a good thing, I was just objectively looking at the factors influencing it.

I hope the averagages continue to rise and we're up 11.9% at come the end of the season!