When the fixtures for the current season were released in early July, The Bulls were paired with Newport County for an August Bank Holiday Monday trip to South Wales.
It was half expected that the timing of the kick-off would be altered to Midday to reduce the likelihood of alcohol related problems. However, on Police "advice", the fixture was moved to the Tuesday with a 7.45 kick-off. Bulls News published notice of this change on 20th July (over a month ago). With just a week to go before the re-arranged fixture it was announced that the game would be all-ticket for Bulls fans with availability limited to around half of the previously predicted numbers expected to travel.
Today, with only days to go before the match, we learn that coaches are to be only allowed to approach Rodney Parade as part of a convoy from an, as yet, unknown rendezvous point outside Newport. One suggestion is that this "holding" point may be as close to Hereford as Ross-on-Wye.
HUISA coaches are currently scheduled to leave Edgar Street at 5.30 pm and with an expected journey time of no more than an hour and fifteen minutes, an arrival at Rodney Parade at 7.15 would require a delay of half an hour at the RV.
With many fans not finishing work in time to use coach travel it does seem likely that the majority will use alternative transport and therefore will be under the radar of Gwent's finest.
Given the ample time available for the policing arrangements to be thought through and implemented it is, frankly, remarkable that with a few days to go we still don't know the full details of the match-day arrangements. EDIT...at 5.00pm today (Wednesday) there was still no further information from Gwent Police.
For a public funded organisation whose job is the help, protect and guide its citizens there does appear to be a lack of planning and communication that suggests they are making it up as they go along.