Bradford Bulls coach Francis Cummins says the Bulls have very little chance of surviving if they lose any more players.
The Odsal club have endured some severe off-field problems and have just been handed a six-point penalty for entering administration. That derailed a takeover bid that was almost complete and leaves them with no owner and sitting on the brink of folding.
Cummins believes the Bulls have enough quality to stay up despite the points loss, but insists they must hold on to their players, who will undoubtedly want to follow in the footsteps of Garreth Carvell and Jarrod Sammut in jumping ship.
“With the group of players I’ve got, I believe we’re six points better off than some other teams,” he said.
“But we’ve got to be able to service the business. We’ve lost some players through this already and, if others are allowed to leave, then basically we’re just being kept alive.
“We’re just a life support to enable other clubs to function.
“There is stuff going on now. The vultures have been circling for months. It’s been anarchy and it’s still anarchy now because I’ve got people tapping up players.
“This is not just agents. We’ve had coaches getting players to ring our players up. They’re getting pressure from other people to join their club.
“But they’re allowed to do it because of the situation we’re in. The silence is deafening within the game.
“Nothing is being done, it is anarchy. It’s been stated [to the Rugby Football League] but I’m not going to hold my breath.
“I couldn’t blame anyone for leaving. You are talking about player welfare and it’s torture. It felt like we were starting to move forward, then the rug gets pulled again.
“You are asking how long mentally people can hang in there. To have the guts ripped out again is not nice.”
