Thats just what Ive just read too, have Fax ticked a box in this Franchise period, only us Sheffield and Fev have

I would suspect it would be based on the next best application from the previous franchise period. Although I suspect they're maybe putting two and two together and getting something a lot different to four.

A "merger" between Fax and a Newco which has purchased the Bulls' playing roster and SL place (similar to Hudds/Sheff and Hull/Gates).

Both teams to finish their seasons based at The Shay and to merge for next season.

You heard it here first......

Well my take on this is that it is a non starter.

Fax and Bradford are both well supported clubs in their respective divisions.

Licensing is about expanding the game

Bradford fans will never become Fax fans and vica versa.

It has as much credabilty as London Broncos surviving another two seasons. Having said that I take no pleasure in saying it.

Licensing has produced only detrimental consequences for the pro game and I am going off the evidence not on my flatcapper mentality.

Try telling that to some Fax fans who have had a bee in their bonnet about this for years.



Praying we either dont get the chance or turn it down tbh.

Luke Amblers confirmed it was a joke on his twitter. The announcement is to do with England RL not Fax/Bradford

As stated, we've been here before.....and in both cases, the 'asset-stripped' club reformed, and re-built.....although, in Gateshead's case, that re-building has suffered a few false dawns!!

I reckon if the Bulls don't get through this then SDL/RFL will use it as the excuse to reduce the number of SDL clubs to 12........so any other SDL club that is currently struggling (and there are two or three if the rumours are to be believed!) needs to start panicking!!

Of course, maybe this is an opportunity for Tricky Dickie's replacement to make a name for themself, grasp the nettle, and look seriously at the future of franchising/licencing, and how the sport, it's member clubs, and income streams are managed!!

I can't believe so much was made of this anyway, it was a ridiculous story.

Tweet from Halifax earlier:

Halifax RLFC ‏@Halifax_RLFC

Folks, there is no truth in rumour of a Super League place for 2013. The Championship and Northern Rail are still our 2012 goals

and:

Halifax RLFC ‏@Halifax_RLFC

The news we wanted to tell you all - is that Adam Robinson has signed a one year contract extension. One of this seasons super players.

Nice free publicity for the club. They would never let us back in SL while we are turning a profit.

What worries me is that if Bradford are relegated to the Chp, they'd probably, upon finding some nice new shiny investors find themselves taking the Chp spot back to SL in a couple of year's time which would be wrong.
RL needs a strong Bradford side tbh

No I think they need a club with a tight grip on their finances - regardless of who that is.

It does. And it also needs the RFL to realise that ALL clubs should be able to aspire to play in the top league. Licensing is flawed ' every time it comes around the criteria are changed to protect those already there.

Bradford would go to C1 with a £150k or so salary cap, and would be in no position to apply in 2014.

Coz thats gonna happen

They could fluke next seasons Trains Cup, and would be in a position to apply!!



If the Bulls do go belly up, what will the RFL do with Odslum? Will they just flog it off to the highest bidder, or could this be the opportunity for the sport to finally get it's own 'base' - re-develop the site into the "Twickkers of The North"??

I think the Tax Man ought to be questioning the sale of Odsal to the RFL.

There are a number of things that appear potentially difficult about the sale: Did Bradford and the RFL understand the poor financial state of the club, and the impending likelihood of liquidation? If so, was the sale concocted to ensure that Odsal would not be sold due to liquidation? Were fair market rates paid by the RFL, for an asset that would have had substantial value for the clubs creditors?

In other words, have Bradford illegally cheated their creditors out of money that could have been released during liquidation? And are the RFL conspirators in this potential fraud?

There may be circumstances that I am unaware of that may render my questions moot - but the situation certainly seems to be more than a little dodgy.

Michael - Bulls didn't sell Odsall to the RFL they sold the lease, BMCC own Odsall. Also, I believe HMRC have already hit the Bulls with a VAT bill for the sale of said lease.

I don't believe it matters if it was a secure lease or if it was the land.

A secure lease must be relinquished before the land can be developed. The tenant can effectively make the land worth £0 to the owner if they don't co-operate, so the leaseholder holds the aces until the lease expires.

The lease was 'sold' to the RFL to repay an rfl loan wasn't it. In which case the rfl may have known about the impending crash.

looks like mr lewis`s timing wasnt to bad after all,if the rugby league knew something was brewing like this.good luck bradford i hope you can sort something out

I can recall being slaughtered for my anti SCL stance in 2003, the cva lost the club the 99 year lease and hence it had little to negotiate with from the move to LSV and nothing from the sale of HP.

Subtleties that some of us have come to understand since then. I supported the consortium bid at the time, but in retrospect I think Mr Nolan would have had run the club well and he couldn't have ripped us off (my main worry) because we didn't have any assets to rip off. However, we would have retained the secure tenancy which would have given us a bargaining chip to get some money from the sale of HP.

Of course, that sale hasn't materialised yet, due to planning permission problems, so it hasn't yet had a negative impact. But one day it will, when we don't get the slice of cash we should have got.

Once again, W1g4n council made it quite clear to the directors of Sporting Club Leigh that if they refused to sign the agreement to play at the LSV, Hilton Park would have its H and S capacity reduced to 1,000 .

Now maybe Mike Nolan would have been willing to play ' Hardball ' with the council, maybe that is why he ran the club into the ground financially in 2002 to attempt to gain majority ownership , but he wasn't from the town and essentially it would not have affected him .

Maybe the place to look at the reasons the club had to give up its lease and therefore any potential ' windfall ' is with the people who were at the forefront of getting the LSV built, they are the ones who put the club in an untenable position, the Centurions are not the only ones who were promised things would be ' workable ' and ' viable ' only to find they are not

Even so, it has to be admitted that it was a mistake to allow the long term secure tenancy to be lost. Potentially cost the club millions.

But that's all in the past, and there's nothing that can be done about it now.

Glad to see something can bring you out of your self imposed exile Steve.