From the Yorkshire Post
National edition
National edition
Caisley confident Bulls empire will continue to expand
Old Trafford tonight provides a fitting backdrop for Bradford Bulls to underline their claim that they are without peers in rugby league. John Ledger reports.
MORE than the odd eyebrow was raised in 1996 when Chris Caisley announced his intention to turn Bradford Bulls into the "Manchester United of rugby league."
This was, after all, a club which had struggled to attract average crowds of more than 5,000 over much of the preceding two decades. And if the people of Hertfordshire and the home counties were not prepared to step off the 'Man U bandwagon' to fill Odsal in winter, there seemed little likelihood they would do so just because rugby league had become a summer sport.
However, eight seasons on, the vision set out by Bradford's long-standing chairman has become reality with the Bulls firmly established as the best-supported club in Super League and standing on the verge of a unique treble.
Bradford's average home attendance at Odsal in Super League this season was 14,939, an increase of 3,415 on last year when they were tenants at the better-equipped but soulless Valley Parade.
A further 19,786 people saw the Bulls beat Leeds at home to reach today's grand final, a match which gives them a golden opportunity to make a clean sweep of silverware in 2003.
The Bulls may not have expanded their support base to London and its environs as Manchester United have done but the parallels between the Super League champions elect and Britain's most successful football team are unavoidable.
Tonight, Bradford play Wigan Warriors in the Tetley's Super League grand final at Old Trafford, a stadium they are gracing for the fourth time since the climactic end to the domestic season was first introduced in 1998.
But perhaps the greatest similarity between the kings of the two codes is their shared refusal to accept that sporting success is cyclical and the common belief that this is not as good as it gets.
"I think you should enjoy the moment because you never know what's round the corner but I see no reason why what we have built at Bradford should not last," said Caisley.
"I hope the supporters revel in the thrill of their team playing in major finals, of seeing their heroes putting in fantastic performances but not in the fear that this could be the last time.
"If you work as hard as the people at Bradford Bulls have worked in the last few years, there is absolutely no logic in the belief that next time it will be somebody else's turn. We set out our short term and long term plans eight years ago and have stuck to them. That is one of the reasons we are where we are.
"There has been a significant turnover in staff at Bradford since 1996 but that has only served to strengthen us as a club."
Although the Bulls have had three head coaches in the Super League rugby era, current incumbent Brian Noble and his predecessor Matthew Elliott have both benefited from the foundations laid by Australian guru Brian Smith in the changeover period from winter to summer in 1995-96.
While great players including the likes of Henry Paul, Brad Mackay and Danny Peacock and accomplished administrators including two chief executives and the late, great marketing man Peter Deakin have come and gone, the rise of the Bulls has shown no signs of abating.
Bradford's mere presence in the final at the end of a season which has already seen them win the Challenge Cup and League Leaders' Shield will fuel their ambitions with Caisley confident the club can pass the magical 10,000 barrier when 2004 season tickets go on sale on Monday.
"Whatever happens in the final it has been a fantastic year and the future looks even brighter," said Caisley, who feels an average crowd of 20,000 per match is not beyond Bradford's means.
"People say it won't happen because it hasn't happened before but then nobody would have given us a prayer of averaging 15,000 eight years ago.
"These things are possible. The Bradford metropolitan district is a significant region and right on our doorstep we have other towns that have historically been rugby league areas but have seen people drift away from the sport for one reason or another.
"There are a lot of customers out there whom we can target. An average of 20,000 is a goal we can achieve."
Caisley's belief that success in rugby league can be permanent is not supported by historical evidence and if proof were needed of the ephemeral nature of glory then Bradford need look no further than their opponents this evening.
Wigan became the most successful club in the sport's 108-year history during a golden era spanning the 1980s and 1990s which saw them win eight successive Challenge Cup finals, eight Championships, three world club challenges and a host of other trophies.
However the cherry and white empire crumbled as quickly as it had grown amidst an aura of indifference and arrogance from supporters and officials who had become to take success for granted.
The Warriors have won just two trophies since 1996 the 1998 Super League title and the Challenge Cup last year but the portents look good for a change of fortune in the town immortalised by George Orwell.
"When I first went to Wigan over 20 years ago they were talking about waking the sleeping giant," said club chairman Maurice Lindsay. "The giant did wake but it went back into its cave and fell asleep again.
"It's coming out again now.
"The greatest indication of that was how the fans stuck with us in the Challenge Cup semi-final against Bradford. There's a real bond between the team and the supporters.
"Even though they knew we weren't going to win, their commitment and passion didn't falter. Nobody left the ground early.
"When we played St Helens in the play-off semi-final in front of a crowd of over 21,700 of which maybe 16,000 were Wiganers that was wonderful, a genuine confirmation of the fact that the Wigan fans are back.
"To win on Saturday would confirm that we are moving forward as a club. To lose wouldn't be the end of the world, either. There is a genuine sense that we are on the way back."
One of the contributory factors to Wigan's demise was the lack of serious competition up against them, a situation Bradford Bulls will not face.
With Leeds Rhinos and Hull both hungry for success and St Helens still a major force, the re-emergence of Wigan could be just what Bradford need to spur them on to even dizzier heights.
john.ledger@ypn.co.uk
