So, as I've said in other threads, I managed to find some probable email addresses for Andrew Chalmers and Graham Lowe, and sent out the same email to them until I found one that was delivered. And, luckily it was Andrew Chalmers email address.



He replied asking me to go in and discuss my concerns at the next home game, which was today. I was quite surprised he got back to me as: 1 - it was a pretty shirty email, and 2 - Their fan contact isn't brilliant up to date.



Today was me and my good mate Sy, and I asked Bullseye to go as he seemed pretty unhappy with the situation as well. He couldn't make it alas, but suggested I contact FA to ask him, which I did and he came with me today.



The email I initially wrote follows, and Andrew Chalmers took a good hour to go over these points, and more with us. I will write up what he said, and I'm sure FA will add the bits I missed/changed, and then I think its common courtesy to send it to Mr Chalmers to look over first. We did ask him if it was alright to put his replies up here and he said it was, as long as we didn't misrepresent him/get it wrong. So its probably going to be later in the week I can feed back to you guys. Sorry.



Here is the email I sent and the return from AC



[iDeano,

You are more than welcome to call into see me at the next home game and discuss your concerns in person.

Please let me know.

Regards

Andrew Chalmers



From: Deano [mailto:deanovski13@*******

Sent: 22 May 2017 10:31

To: *******

Cc: *******

Subject: A concerned fan

Importance: High



Hi there,



As a long term supporter I feel I need to write to put forward my very real concerns about the club I have followed faithfully for years.



I would imagine this email will fall upon deaf ears, but a reply from Mr Chalmers or Mr Lowe to acknowledge my worries, in return for the many thousands of pounds I have spent on the club over the years, the time spend travelling and attending home and away games, the donations and being with (and foolishly believing) the succession of appalling owners who have brought us to this, the edge of oblivion, would be gratefully received.



I have been supporting the Bulls for many years, despite not being a Bradford native, my first game was in the first season of Superleague, and from there I have been lucky enough to see the period when we were the best in the world, through all the issues faces through several iterations of terrible management, to where we are now.



This is my fun time, this is my recreational pastime. But it’s really not fun anymore. Despite now living in Derbyshire I rarely miss a home game, but I’m trying to find a reason to carry on going this season. The team performances have deteriorated since the season started, and this compounded by other issues such as the botched Visas for our invisible coach (although listening to the table banging and swearing from him on Sunday I wondered why he can’t coach that passion into our team of loanees, kids and past-it ex-stars on the pitch), announcing players we aren’t able to play (Chisholm and Phoenix), and the utter lack of communication to the fans don’t instil confidence that your management of our club is any better than those before.



Throughout our fall from the top there have always been a hardcore of maybe 3000 fans who have stuck by us through thick and thin, but I can see that being eroded. I know of many fans who won’t bother coming again this season unless something positive happens, and who could blame them? Us poor fans have been through the mixer and yet still keep coming, but who wants to see their team beaten by 50+ points on a weekly basis? I was dreading going to Blackpool next week to watch our team utterly destroyed by a rampant Hull KR team on national TV, and so I’m not going to bother. It’s like going to a bullfight to support the Bull. I know RL is a game of ups and downs, but where are our ups? I would rather we didn’t exist than sit through an excruciating season of utter humiliations and then relegation. Who wants to see a beloved pet kicked to death? That’s how it feels.



I’m not sure what the plan is, but at the moment I can see nothing other than relegation and then part-time, with a crowd of maybe 1000 next year. Maybe this is the plan? The RFL don’t appear to know what they are doing, and if (through their incompetence) they end up with Odsal stadium with no club to play there then I’ll shed no tears. I will give up on Rugby League however, and I know many more that will too.



These points would go a long way to getting a bit more spirit in the fans, and a bit more pride in the Bulls:



• Can you please try and reconnect with these fans (myself included)? Fan forums, talk to the press, do an online Q&A, T&A interview, ANYTHING!

• We don’t need lies and empty promises, hell we had enough of them from Green, Khan, Caisley and all the others; no we just want you to tell us what the plan is?

• What are the short term and long term aims? (and don’t give us that BS about Champ 1 survival or promotion to SL, because that’s just pie in the sky talk. I want a helicopter but there isn’t a way in hell I’m getting one at the moment). What are your REAL aim? What should we expect? IS there a future?

• Why are we spending money on an academy when we need players in the first team? Are we going to be the only team in the third tier with an academy? Are we being lined up as a feeder team for others? I’m mean Huddersfield would be knackered without our academy, and incredibly so would the England national team.

• If you have no money to invest, and by god it looks like it, why were you given the club instead of some other bidders who HAD money to invest?

• Why, if you had nothing to invest in the team, did you take on a team of kids with a -12 deficit AND having to play Hull KR 3 times? Why not start in CH2 instead?

• We were told there were no players available last year and yet Rohan managed make signings within days of becoming coach. This season we have been told that there are no players available however other teams (in our division) ARE signing players; so if there is money available for strengthening why are we not in the market for these players?

• Are you just RFL stooges sent in to fulfil the fixtures/wring out the last of the money from us poor, manipulated Bulls fans one last time before the club is euthanised at the end of the season? I don’t want to believe this, but in the dearth of real information from the club these sort of rumours gain traction. Maybe it is true. Only you guys know.

• Please, please, please, PLEASE get someone to check the spelling and grammar on your infrequent (and often laughably late) press releases. Hell, send them to me to check over first! We’re a laughing stock on the pitch and in the league already, there is NO EXCUSE for this shoddy and amateurish language.





I’m not expecting a reply, if anything the deafening silence from the club about almost everything makes me expect that anyway (apart from rolling out poor Leigh Beattie for those after-match interviews where he apologises for another appalling display. Isn’t he the kit man? I hope he has got a pay-rise as ‘interim coach’), but I will await a reply even if it’s a ‘thanks for your concern’ email. It may make me carry on going this season. You may not lose another faithful long term fan.



And bear in mind what I said about being your spell/grammar checker. If it’s going to help (Note: it IS going to help you look less amateurish) then I’m happy to help.



Thanks for your time.

Deano[/i

While I don't want to get ahead of myself with the content of what he said, we all came out from that room feeling a lot happier than when we went in.

Well thank you for sharing but I remain unconvinced by them and actions will speak louder than words. They continue to let some absolute numpty be the public face of the club they're supposedly running, that in itself worries me. Today's twitter feed says our next home game is against Olfham today at 15:00. I mean seriously ffs, it's frankly embarrassing.



I'm willing to listen but I remain unconvinced that this season is anything but a sham and a waste of my time, money or effort. My only hope is perhaps there will be something to get behind in 2018.

All I can say at this moment is thanks you.



I look forward to the second part of this.



Sorry to be a pain. Have you emailed chalmers with you minutes?



I look forward to part 2

I haven't. I only got home at 8 and have been doing family since. I'll try and get them done tomorrow and send them to FA for proofing.



We did mention the spelling/grammar and he did get back to us about that too. He said they were going to give the lad a dyslexia test and if he passed that they were going to run a drug test on him....

Same here.

I have to say, without an actual public declaration, which is something the club is lacking in providing, I really am leaning towards the belief that there will be no Bradford Bulls in 2018 and the only reason these guys got the club is because the RFL wanted to put people in charge who'd at least ensure there was a club to see out the fixtures that were already in place in order for other clubs to get a pay day when the Bulls come for a visit.



I have no faith in the club or the RFL and I honestly feel that 2017 is the last year there will be professional rugby league in Bradford

Preposterously inadequate and an appalling way to start up a professional, well supported Rugby League Club imo

Glad to see he gave that a suitably sensible response. That bodes well for the rest of the questions.

Whilst I am interested in hearing 'something', I would have to take anything said with a small dose of salt. Given what we have seen so far has been less than professional, why would we assume they're capable of delivering what they're planning?

More importantly, why hasn't he done anything about it!?

I hope there's more to that particular topic. If the answer was just "Yeah we know, he's a f***ing idiot isn't he hahaha" and then ignore it and carry on, then it's not dealing with the problem. They shouldn't be testing him for drugs, they should be sacking him. I don't accept this idea that he's learning the job because the mistakes he makes consistently and repeatedly are the exact same mistakes he made last time, and the time before. If you don't learn from your mistakes, then you're not trying to be better.