Bradford Bulls need to act over Odsal and financial scrutiny

I had to do that Bulls end of season survey on social media and the T&A website, or I wouldn't have a chance of passing my upcoming qualification.

Next Friday, I need to have a portfolio completed for my National Qualification in Journalism, and if that fits the bill, and I pass my two exams the following week, I'll become an actual senior journalist.

This is something I've been aiming for since September 2019, when I completed my journalism apprenticeship.

But Covid slowed everything down, and a sports desk of six of us slimmed down to three.

I have to do a couple of social media pieces as part of the portfolio, and figured I needed to focus on clubs with decent reach, namely Bradford City, Bradford (Park Avenue) or Bradford Bulls.

Witnessing the dissent from fans of the latter, pretty much all season long, I knew an end of season survey would get people talking, and hopefully voting.

The tension between the fans and those on the pitch and in the boardroom was clear during and after this pathetic defeat at Newcastle Thunder in July. (Image: Tom Pearson.)

It would have been so easy to ask only the basics, who was your star player? what was your favourite match? etc, and while I did that too to provide balance, I wanted to make sure there were plenty of questions in there that tackled head-on the problems the club currently faces.

I doubt the survey will have won me too many friends at Bulls, but ultimately I am there to challenge the club when things are going wrong, and of course praise them when things are going well.

The survey went down well on the whole, although my dear friend below the line, Carl, insisted "them questions was rubbish".

Can't please everyone I guess.

Given the piece was meant to be social media focused, I conducted my polls through Twitter, and was pleased with the amount of engagement on them.

All 10 questions were answered by between 188 and 201 people, and while there were no major surprises in the responses, it was certainly an eye-opener to see just how deep the discontent among the fanbase runs.

I won't bore you by breaking down all 10 questions and their responses in this article, you can go online to see that.

But it is certainly worth looking at a few of the major negatives.

In question two, which was the most voted on, 72.6 per cent of those who responded said the most worrying situation at Bulls currently was the lack of financial transparency on offer from the boardroom.

Chairman Nigel Wood has faced questions over whether the past is affecting the club's current finances. (Image: Stock)

Questions are constantly being asked, from fans and journalists alike, of club chairman Nigel Wood and the board, about where Bulls finances are actually at, and whether the spectre of former owner Andrew Chalmers still looms large over the club or not.

Fans' forums, supporter liaison meetings and myself and other journalists have given the board chance to offer some kind of response, but there has been little revealed thus yet.

Hopefully this T&A survey, and the upcoming supporter liaison meeting, will force the club's hand on that front.

If not, you can be sure I'll be asking for a face-to-face interview with Wood or club CEO Jason Hirst to discuss the situation.

Hirst deserves credit for trying to open up more to supporters, putting out regular club statements and promising a fans' forum every quarter.

But is he responding to the questions the fans want answered? Certainly there is little doubt he angered many supporters a few weeks ago when he encouraged them to "move on" from the past, despite that clearly still having an effect on the present.

Jason Hirst has tried to be open with the Bulls fans since becoming CEO, but are the fans actually getting the answers they want from him? (Image: @OfficialBullsRL.)

And with that being said, a worrying 68.2 per cent of those we surveyed labelled the club's fan engagement as 'bad' for 2022.

And Odsal did not come across well in the survey either.

We love the old girl, but frankly, the stadium is anything but modern, and has become the butt of jokes among rival clubs, and some of Bulls' own fans.

If the Government's Levelling Up funding comes off, that could change everything, but that is a hope rather than a guarantee.

Twenty-three per cent of those asked said Odsal's current condition was the most disappointing thing for them this season, and it might have had more votes, if the club's home form in 2022 (four wins all year) had not been so shocking.

In a separate question, 57.1 per cent admitted they want to see a cleaner stand/facilities at Odsal, which is surely a basic requirement of a stadium hosting second-tier rugby league.

David Foggin-Johnston and Chester Butler celebrate a try in the home win over Dewsbury in front of seats often dirtied by the stock car track around the pitch. (Image: Tom Pearson)

The board's communication needs to improve, Odsal needs to improve, and home results needs to improve.

And until all three do, it's hard to imagine an overwhelmingly content fanbase any time soon.