Sutcliffe looking forward to new era at Bulls after RFL’s decision

There was huge relief around Odsal yesterday after the RFL board of directors confirmed they will not be relegated to the Championship or face a mini-round of licencing.

Although new owner Omar Khan had his takeover ratified by the governing body on Tuesday, there had still been a nervous wait regarding their top-flight future.

But the RFL have awarded Bradford – whose coach Mick Potter has revealed he is returning to Australia – a one-year probationary Super League licence to prove their credentials.

Former Sports Minister and Bradford South MP Sutcliffe told the Yorkshire Post: “We’ve said we will need to talk to them about what that actually does mean.

“But we’re in Super League and we’ll be operating as a Super League club. That’s the main thing. It’s ended all the uncertainty and is great news for all the fans and the city.

“We can get on with selling season tickets now, getting sponsors in and making sure the people of Bradford get behind us.

“Also, we can appoint a new coach which we hope to do on Monday morning.”

Potter, who had worked unpaid for the last 10 weeks after being made redundant by the club’s administrators, turned down the chance to stay and has instead recommended his assistant Francis Cummins to succeed him.

The ex-Leeds Rhinos assistant is still only 35 but widely respected, has worked under Potter for the last two years and is expected to be given the nod.

Sutcliffe said: “We’re sorry to see Mick go but we’ve left on good terms. He’s been worn out by the process. He wants to go home for a couple of weeks and think about what he wants to do next.”

On the reaction of Khan, the curry restaurant owner who helped bring the Bulls back from the brink, Sutcliffe said: “Omar’s very pleased. He’s been under the weather with a sore throat so it’s cheered him up tremendously.

“I’m really pleased for him. He’s the one taking the biggest risk by putting his money in. He’s finally got the good news and it’s ‘wow.’

“It’s an opportunity to start a great new era as the first Asian owner of a Super League club.

“That alone could be a real boost for the Bulls.”

Clearly, some critics will argue Bradford should have been demoted for entering administration in June but Sutcliffe countered: “We’ve always believed it is, and should be, a Super League club.

“We can’t be held responsible for what’s happened in previous regimes. At some point in the future, there will have to be a look at what did actually happen to get to the bottom of it all.

“But we have been hit by the points deduction and some of the conditions put down on us.

“We’ve been grateful for the support of other Super League chairmen; they’ve been very positive in their attitude towards us and I believe it was the right decision to keep us in. This club can now promote both the city and the sport.”

Potter had done brilliantly to guide Bradford through all this year’s adversity to within a whisker of making the play-offs for the first time in four seasons.

Indeed, if not for that six-point deduction, the Bulls would have comfortably finished in seventh.

But he said: “I was always going to return to Australia and I feel now is the right time for me to go.

“I have recommended Francis Cummins as my successor. He has worked with me throughout my time at the club and in my opinion will become a very good first-team coach.

“I have enjoyed my time at the Bulls and the supporters and people at the club are second to none.

“I feel, too, that despite circumstances out of our control the team, through the rugby league we played, showed a lot of character in the midst of terrible adversity. Omar Khan and Gerry Sutcliffe have come in and rescued the club and were very keen for me to stay for a longer tenure. I made it clear to them that my decision has nothing to do with their purchase of the club. It has been the things that have happened over the previous five months that have caused my decision.”

The Bulls have just 16 players contracted for next season and, technically, they could all walk away as Craig Kopczak has already done.

However, Sutcliffe says the “indication” is all will stay.

RFL chief executive Nigel Wood said: “The board deliberated long and hard and took into consideration the many views of the sport’s various constituents before reaching a decision we believe is in the best interests of the whole game.

“A probationary licence allows us to closely monitor the performance of Bradford Bulls next season and develop a view on what direction we take in future years.

“The probationary licence also precludes the need for a mini-licensing round, which the overwhelming majority of clubs accept was impractical given the timeframes involved.”

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