All publicity is good publicity, at least that’s what they say.

But the gaudy headlines from the last few days have proved that is certainly not the case.

Bradford sport has been put on the national map all right. For all the wrong reasons.

The Bulls plunge into financial chaos and are left battling to stay alive as a Super League club.

City were just simply battling as a bad-tempered encounter with Crawley became the prequel for Valley Parade’s very own Royal Rumble.

And the current state of Bradford sport suddenly went viral.

Tuesday’s blanket coverage of the Bulls on Sky Sports News had morphed 24 hours later into brawl-by-brawl coverage of the Bantams boxing match.

Once again the name of Bradford was hogging the limelight – much to the city’s shame.

By now, I’d imagine there will be media luvvies in London eagerly commissioning the next Bradford-bashing documentary for Channel 4.

“Yes Quentin, I feel it’s time we explored the obvious links between run-down northern mill towns and ill-discipline on the field of play. And we could mention the team that play the other type of rugby and ask whether they have ever learned to count.”

“Spiffing idea, Sebastian. Clearly these people have not been educated properly. It would never happen in Eton.”

Gosh, even the latte set in south Kensington have heard of Bradford’s two professional teams now. Pavement culture has been consumed by chatter concerning Andrew Davies and Peter Hood.

Meanwhile, Bulls and City try to pick up the pieces from a week neither will want to repeat in a hurry.

At Odsal, all hands are to the pump just to keep the club in business.

It’s inconceivable to think that one of Super League’s powerhouse members could suddenly cease to exist.

But the noises coming from the boardroom were no idol threats. The money is no more.

We all feared it when the RFL announced that they had taken over the lease of the stadium.

Despite words to the contrary, the Bulls were clearly in trouble at that point. Just how much trouble suddenly became apparent when Hood went public on Monday afternoon.

Their cap-in-hand appeal to the rugby league audience has prompted a spirited response from fans, sponsors and even other clubs. The likes of Brian McDermott selling off his Grand Final winning medal and Widnes supremo Steve O’Connor pledging £10,000 demonstrates the depth of good will towards the club.

Rugby league’s community spirit has shone through in this darkest episode. You could never imagine football reacting with similar charity.

Meanwhile, City are counting the cost of their ill-discipline in terms of absent bodies. As their season heads towards a nervous climax, three of their biggest performers are sidelined in disgrace.

Luke Oliver has started 42 games this season – seven more than his closest team-mate. In a campaign that has seen a bigger cast list than Zulu, the big man has been a towering constant in the heart of defence.

Davies has been a regular companion at his side, apart from the seven games he missed early doors after the first two red cards. A third one in the Crawley melee has effectively ruled him out for good.

And Jon McLaughlin, usually the most mild-mannered goalkeeper, had finally made the number one spot his own after years of trying. With one swing of his right fist, the starting shirt has once again been snatched away.

The shamed trio have not travelled to Plymouth, though maybe they should have been forced to as part of the punishment.

Instead they are banished from a game that has become hugely significant in terms of City’s long-term future. They will also be unavailable for Phil Parkinson for the Easter double against promotion-chasers Southend and Shrewsbury.

Three names that would probably be written down first on the team sheet have now become persona non grata.

No wonder Parkinson looked like he’d seen a ghost when he faced the press in the immediate aftermath of the post-match free-for-all.

The headline for Lee Bullock’s interview before the game looked sadly ironic. “We’re a team of fighters not quitters” had been taken far too literally by a head-strong few.

Equally, a piece I had earmarked ahead of the Plymouth trip – and then promptly binned – had called for cool and calm heads in these tense times. The player quoted? Jon McLaughlin.

The national/international media spotlight will turn elsewhere before long. Our clubs can return to business as usual, whatever that is.

But the damage has been done in the public’s eyes; another stain on the city’s character that will take a long while to remove. Welcome to Bradford, the home of disharmony, brawls and bankruptcy.