Bradford coach Potter backs club to escape financial woe

The Bulls, who went down to a battling 24-18 defeat at high-flying Hull on Friday, are in financial trouble and their future is in grave doubt after it emerged during the week that they need to raise £500,000 by Friday to keep the tax man from their door.

Administration, or even a winding-up order, hangs heavy over the club with the desperation of their plight illustrated by a call to their fans to donate £100 each to reach a final £1m mark by the end of next month.

Close to £200,000 had been raised in just four days and Potter believes they can now be saved.

He said: “I am confident that something will happen. There is some more fundraising over the week which should pump it up even more.

“I know the board are talking to various people that are potential investors in the club which is a great thing for us.”

Potter said he had been blown away by the support from around rugby league with Widnes owner Steve O’ Connor donating £10,000 earlier this week.

“The rugby league community has been great and it shows what rugby league means to the people,” he said. “They are very passionate. Bradford has a rich history and they don’t want it to end.”

Amid the gloom of the week, Potter’s side showed they have the stomach for the on-field fight on Friday as they went close to ending Hull’s unbeaten home record this term.

The Bulls levelled the score at 18-18 with 14 minutes left when teenager Tom Bateman crossed for a memorable try.

While Briscoe completed a slick Hull move with 10 minutes left to clinch the contest, Potter was full of praise for his men.

“I couldn’t be happier with the way they played. Given the situation I’d expect nothing less and they gave nothing less.

“I don’t think that the financial concerns are a distraction on the field. On the field they just worry about attack and defend.

“I think they felt the gravity of the situation when they went down to clap the fans at the end. The fans were great. They didn’t stop cheering.”

Hull coach Peter Gentle was pleased to scrap to a hard-fought win, which moved them second in the Super League table, after admitting his young side had struggled at times with the Bulls’ intensity.

“All things considered it was a tough win,” he said. “We knew they’d turn up in that frame of mind. You only had to see their warm-up to see how intense that was. We were prepared for that.

“We were under no illusions they were not going to go away. We made it hard for ourselves at times. But we hung in there.”