[Bullseye]

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 1:52 pm  

My Dad took me as a kid to the odd game my first being GB vs the Kiwis in 1980. I really got into it properly in the mid 80s and have been hooked since.

Having grown up in Pudsey I got some stick for being a Bradford fan so I can empathise with pumpetypump. It just served to make me more vociferous.

On the Errol Stock/Garth Budge connection Garth coached me when I was at Uni. A nice bloke.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 2:11 pm  

In 1993 Keighley Cougars ran a trip to Wembley for GB v NZ, came home from school asking if I could go, my dad said I could but we would go watch a Bradford match before I went to see if I liked it, he hadn't been much for the past few years, but had been going in the 60/70/80s. Went to the first match against Sheffield and we won 36-26 and loved it, went to most of the home games and a few away games that year, then got a season ticket the following season and had one ever since.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 2:47 pm  

Bullseye wrote:

On the Errol Stock/Garth Budge connection Garth coached me when I was at Uni. A nice bloke.

The tigress worked with his wife. I am sure she mentioned he wasn't in that good health.

[Bullseye]

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 4:50 pm  

He'll be getting on a bit now I suppose.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 5:24 pm  

My late father came home one day in early 1972 (when I was 10) and told me he was becoming a Director of Bradford Northern. Oh yeah I thought, but a week or two later we were in the Director's Box at McLaren Field to watch a side containing a few legends (Barry Seabourne, David Redfearn, Eddie Tees etc) get turned over by Bramley 8-5. That was a major upset as Northern eventually finished second in the table and only just lost to St Helens in the Championship semi final.

I have plenty of memories from the 4 years the old feller was on the board but many more from after he'd quit. We did live next door to Carole and Garth Budge at Wyke in the seventies and I know Garth isn't in great health now. A nice bloke though and he also coached me at Dudley Hill for a time in the early 1980's.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 5:25 pm  

I started going because my Grandparents and Auntie were season ticket holders. I think I got one free so my Dad started taking me 1990/91 season.

The first season I can really remember was 93 when we signed Paul Newlove. Used to stand at that time on the 3rd corner at Rooley Lane end of the ground. We stood with my Aunties friends which was great as they kept me warm with hot Bovril at half time!!!

Used to also go watch speedway on a Saturday night and would go down Sunday morning to help put the corners down for the afternoon Northern game. As an 8year old I loved it as I was the only kid and it meant I could walk pitchside. Don't think it would be allowed now with H&S laws.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 5:49 pm  

Some long love affairs going on here, mines quite a lot shorter.

Lancashire born and raised, no Yorkshire blood in me but Bradford has always been my team, first match was the Grand final in 2002 when I was 13 (I think) when a Sean Long DG earned a win for Saints, then quite sporadic after that for a few years with games here and there, then the GF in 2005 was the next game I remember.

Since about 2008 I have been ever present, could be my bad luck we started to go down hill since then, best memory is the 22-20 win over wigan in 2010, missed some games here and there but ive always tried to make it.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Tue Jan 13, 2015 6:58 pm  

Errol Stock wrote:

Amazing BeechwoodBull! I have used Errol Stock as a sign on for the Totalrl.com/forums since 1995 and only one person on there ever knew of him (he asked if I was really him).
I also use it on Twitter - but on there it will never be picked up on.

So you are the first and only person who shares my memory to a tee (at least online). Errol Stock was my first ever true life hero, an excellent fullback who made an immediate impact on his arrival. When games were played with a smattering of snow on the pitch, both he and Garth Budge stood out a mile (sun tanned legs you see!). I think Garth Budge still watches most games - or at least when I saw him last at the back of the "new stand" a couple of years ago.

Some may class us as ancient - but as far as I am concerned - completely on the ball

Quite right Errol was a hero of his day, as was Garth Budge. As an aside we read today in the Brighouse echo that Connie Womersley, Harry's wife and Garth's mother in law has died aged 88. A nice lady and a nice family!

So my first game was in the 50s and it came about due to me and my mates being speedway fans also, we were part of a team of youngsters who moved the corners after the Rugby and as a payment we had free admission to both the Rugby and the speedway. My father took me to see Northern before then. He was a friend of Alan Edwards and a great Northern Supporter. You might say Northern and the Bulls are my passion and over the years I have had the privilege of knowing many of our past and present players, and backroom staff, the icon that often drove me to go the extra mile was of course Trevor Foster, who never took a backward step, and maintained that giving in was never an option. So isn't it great that we supporters didn't give in and we still have a good team to follow.

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Wed Jan 14, 2015 1:36 pm  

Growing up in the East Midlands, rugby meant Union and more pertinently it meant it was too muddy to play football.
I never took any interest in either code until I met some friends through going camping who were Bulls fanatics. This was in 2004. One afternoon in 2005 we were visiting them and they asked if we'd like to tag along to a match (Fev away in the cup). After about 15 minutes I was hooked. I went to pretty much every game that season including Old Trafford.

Season ticket holder for a few seasons until life got in the way but I still get to as many games as I can despite the 160 mile round trip. I'm looking forward to seeing a few new venues this year as well as hopefully seeing us get back to winning ways

Re: How Did You Become a Bulls (or Northern) Fan? : Thu Jan 15, 2015 1:56 pm  

AJW wrote:

... One afternoon in 2005 we were visiting them and they asked if we'd like to tag along to a match (Fev away in the cup). After about 15 minutes I was hooked. ..

I must say that watching your first game somewhere like Post Office Road must be truly mind-blowing, as you stand so close to the play, you can almost feel the hits, the players look huge, and you can hear the impacts and get a far better impression of the speed and especially the sheer physicality of the game.

I converted to the Bulls when Bradford Park Avenue were kicked out of the football league. Switching to the enemy was totally out of the question, so with a couple of mates we switched to full-time Northern fans, though I had been to plenty of games at odsal before, but that season we started going to away games and I think it was mainly the breathtaking impression that the game made on me at close quarters at places like Fev or Thrum Hall that got me hooked.