Gerry Sutcliffe has hailed Omar Khan’s financial input at the Bulls – but reiterated that support from elsewhere was needed to safeguard the club’s long-term future.

Khan last week released a substantial sum from his property portfolio to raise funds to pay the wages of players and staff for July.

That eased fears of a repeat of last year’s financial meltdown as Khan and Sutcliffe prepare for their one-year anniversary at the helm.

Former Sports Minister Sutcliffe is confident the Bulls can look forward with cautious optimism – although he warned that Khan could not bankroll the club indefinitely.

Sutcliffe said: “It’s almost a year since we took over and we should reflect on how much progress has been made on and off the field.

“We did say it would be a hard slog and it has proven so, but we couldn’t have done it without Omar’s investment, and the fans shouldn’t forget that.

“It’s no good people patting him on the back – at the end of the day we want investment because we can’t keep relying on Omar to bail the club out.

“That should be from people who want to see the city do well.

“Provident Finance have been supportive, as have other sponsors, but we need more.

“Omar has shown his commitment and if it doesn’t work then he loses everything, so we’ve got to make sure it does work.”

According to Sutcliffe, the Bulls have several “irons in the fire” regarding potential investment but said supporters could play their part by turning out in force.

The Bulls host Catalan Dragons in a match billed as a play-off shoot-out on Sunday and Sutcliffe added: “This weekend’s game is crucial.

“A good result will give our hopes of a top-eight finish a massive boost so we want the fans to back us in their numbers.

“Like I said, we were getting pats on the back after taking over last year but that support didn’t materialise in terms of season-ticket sales.

“We would hope that now we have 12 months under our belts that people will reconsider and help us look to a strong future.”

Season-ticket sales and average crowds have fallen well below Sutcliffe’s expectations this year but he said the club would again aim high for 2014.

“We wanted 10,000 season-ticket holders this year and I see no reason why we can’t go for the same again next year,” said Sutcliffe.

“We’ve frozen season-ticket prices for next year and we want more investors to come on board.

“In saying that, I think the lessons we have learned in the last 12 months will stand us in good stead for the next 12 months.

“We’ve got something to measure against now whereas we didn’t before and we have picked up the experiences that we didn’t have before either.

“Things are going as well as we could have expected after 12 months and we did say it would take two years to turn the club around.”

Sutcliffe is awaiting an update from the RFL on the Craig Kopczak saga as the Bulls seek further compensation from Huddersfield for the Wales international.