Weren't you all expecting Doyle to leave anyway? Or is it just the emotional factor of it being Keighley?

It's just another club with a money man while we stay penniless. This is nothing new.

For me, it's not simply that it's Keighley; it's that he is leaving for a club in the same league as us.



I understand players wanting to play at a higher level, so when people depart for a Super League to "better themselves", then one has to wish them well.



But Doyle is going to a club with whom you would hope we can at least compete financially. It shows that we are not even pretending to be aiming for SL anymore; we're scrapping with the "have nots" in the lower reaches of the Championship.



What even is the point of an Academy anymore? Is it simply to develop players for teams like Keighley, who don't have an Academy of their own, but are apparently "cashed up"



You could argue we should have realised this years ago. Perhaps we've been deluding ourselves?

This was my point previously. If we didn't have this extra expense maybe we could buy good players from other clubs academies instead. Like K-town or everywhere else we seem to sell our best and brightest to.



I also commented on a Facebook post asking why are we running a reserve team if we don't have enough players in the first team and Stuart Duffy (I presume. Who would pretend to be him?) got back to me with "[i...it’s a requirement of the Academy licence. A lot of the players have been from other clubs...[/i" which seems to be an enormous waste of money too.

Lots of points here. I’ll offer my opinion on them all.

With the background of the IMG strategy reveal pending and reading between the lines, I think we’ve committed to two chances of improvement.

1 - we’ve bet the farm on an academy being important to IMG.

2 - the council & levelling up funding.



This move from Keighley, it feels like a really cut price version of the Tevez/noisy neighbours move. It proves they’re back, it improves their options at hooker and plays really well with their fan base and sponsors.

But, if you think about it, they’ve got to go for it. If we end up with 2x10, and academies are important, then if the current 12 SL teams and the 3 championship teams with academies all get licenses, then there’s only 5 spots left. 5 spots for Toulouse, Fev, Halifax, Barrow, Batley, York, Keighley to fight over.

It’s all high risk with this uncertainty. Keighley are going big next year because they feel they need top6. We’ve gambled on a functioning, player developing academy. Who knows how it will play out.

I’ve seen a few reserve games this year. We’ve usually got 2 or 3 fringe Keighley squad players in our reserve line up, laughably.

I can only assume Keighley has a sugar daddy now, because if what they’ve offered Doyle is representative then they’re going to be a top4 spending club next year, on a par with Fev & Toulouse. We couldn’t compete with that.

I think it's more that we went from losing our best young talent to the NRL to top 6 Superleague clubs, to Hull KR, to Halifax and Featherstone and now a newly promoted team. Irrespective of how much they are rumoured to have offered him (it's Tom Doyle not James Roby so won't be astronomical) a side who we should be competing with are a more attractive proposition.

I bet he hasn't been offered the earth. It wouldn't surprise me if it's a first team level contract and we're trying to keep him on a squad player's contract.

Does anyone who watches the academy more than me know how many players from amateur clubs we've drafted in to complete fixtures?

Academy - none. Reserves, maybe 3 or 4 per squad?

Doyle's contract offer from CC is significant. I think someone has mentioned it before, but their offer was enough to convince him to stay part time and top up with Championship rugby.



Personally speaking, whilst it sticks in the throat somewhat that its Keighley he is jumping ship to, I'd rather have a better balanced squad with an aim at competing for top six than busting a gut to keep one player who could be wiped out through injury at any moment.



Before anyone accuses me of being a Wood supporter (of which I am absolutely not), I don't and will not buy into the rhetoric that the club cannot compete on a lower budget. Teams like Batley and Barrow have proven that this can be done sustainably with the right signings.



I also don't agree with a large consensus that Mark Dunning is not a quality coach. I have seen enough personally (and heard a lot more) that the guy is worth a shot at the job. He has ideas about the style of rugby we need to play and trust me, the squad Kear built is not up to that. This has upset people like Crossley and we are now seeing the result of that in the papers.



Personally I don't care about anything else other than what the new additions think and more importantly how they apply themselves because the vast majority of the team have been an embarrassment through their behaviour and actions!!!

I think most of this is true. We must give Dunning a chance with the squad he puts together himself before we have a go at him. Also if as Crossley says there is something radically wrong within the club why has Butler signed? He must have known if something wasn't right before he signed and I'm sure a player of his quality would have attracted interest from other clubs.

Tom Holmes is a great signing and I think he would have known, either from other players or his agent, that something was amiss.

Significant in comparison to what though? what we've offered him? That doesn't necessarily mean hes on anymore than the going rate and someone at the club is bound to say they've offered him a load of cash if the offer is above ours.



The same thing's happening at my work - I work in an industry that's difficult to get experienced staff. Someone leaves and it's "they've been offered mega bucks good luck to them" when in actual fact we aren't paying the market rate.

Tom Holmes is a good signing but he's not at a higher level than Jordan Lilley or Dec Patton when we signed them. It's rule number one that you spend most on the half backs and he clearly isn't in Fev's long term plans.



I'll wait and see how the whole squad lines up for next season first.

Holmes was actually released by Fev in June. He was very good in 2018 when coached by John Duffy but sustained a season-ending ACL injury in the Summer Bash and has struggled for consistency since then. Good half back on his day.

I can only go by what I was told... and I was told correctly he was going to Keighley before it was common knowledge (if you look back on the thread). So I have no reason to suggest this is incorrect.



It was suggested the offer was significantly higher than any other offers he got from any other club including Bulls. When you add it to his earnings from his other work he is pretty comfortable so he decided to stay part time in Championship.



Some will say he lacked ambition but ultimately he is out to make a living and will go where the money is best. Cougars are throwing some big cash at a few big names, but they can't afford an all star squad like Leigh and will be hoping to keep their marquee players fit and on the field, otherwise its a very ordinary Championship team.

Whoafff - that IS a kick in the gut!



Maybe there should be rule introduced a bit like the one that was mooted for doctors trained in the UK then go on to serve their pre-registration year(s) training in NHS hospitals would be contractually and financially bound to said NHS for x number of years before going to private practice or beggaring off abroad for a bigger payday. Not sure this ever came to pass. Maybe for legal reasons. But Sports Administrations seem to have some leeway.



Post Bosman ruling UEFA/FIFA decreed that, were a young player to have been groomed (possibly a bad choice of word (Bongser’s) in the light of several recent revelations) in a club’s youth system for some years and were subsequently poached by a bigger fish, there should be decent compensation for the parent club with add-ons thereafter for both success and later increased fee transfers.



The RFL has had lots of ballox rules over the years that have stood. Why not a useful one for a change?



We’ll see what IMG have to offer (and with whom they are actually in bed) later this month.

Dalton Desmond Walker has left Keighley, could he be an option for 2023, played for Bulls reserves a few times this year. Keighley fans are sad to see him go.

What worries me is that Dunning hasn’t improved any of the existing players in his (admittedly short) period in charge.



It’s all well and good writing the squad off as John Kear’s fault but there’s plenty of players who haven’t played to their potential this year. Whether it’s attitude or something else, it’s still the coach’s job to get performances out of them.



Dunning’s record since taking permanent charge is shocking - with a worse squad next year I don’t have much confidence.

is it worse though the squad I mean? Except for maybe Ben Blackmore? There’s been a lot of players with crap attitudes this season not caring about fitness etc hopefully a few in that do should make a lot of difference personally I’m reserving judgement on dunning till first 5 games of next season

I assume he is referring to the drop in budget. Crowds will be down and there is this loan to pay back, so unless somebody is plugging the shortfall I don’t think it is unreasonable to assume the playing budget will also fall. I’ve seen nothing to convince me otherwise that our realist aim for next year will be to stay up rather than anything else.

I think Dunning will need a fast start next year. I don't think the remaining fan base will have patience for him to find his feet.



Expect our first fixture will be Keighley away as they do like sending us "a fancied" team first up

Absolutely nailed on. I bet our opening month will be something like:



Round 1: Keighley A

Round 2: Fev H

Round 3 Barrow A

Round 4: Toulouse H

Round 5: London A



Halifax or Keighley at the Bash.

And Newcastle away for magic weekend. But we are the RFLs favourites remember!

https://www.bradfordbulls.co.uk/article ... agan-stays

https://www.bradfordbulls.co.uk/article ... agan-stays