BULLS chairman Andrew Chalmers has backed the decision to keep just one automatic promotion place in League One, insisting: "We need to earn our place in the Championship."

A pivotal day in domestic rugby league yesterday saw a vote to scrap the Super 8s go through with a return to one up, one down promotion and relegation.

As part of the league restructuring, a 14-team Championship will be formed next season and it had been expected that an extra automatic spot for the second-placed League One team - currently Bulls - would be created in order to implement that.

However, instead the RFL have decided that teams from second to fifth will play semi-finals with the winners of the promotional final going up. An extra place in the Championship for 2019 will be decided by a play-off final between the team that finishes bottom of the Championship Shield and the loser of the promotional final.

And Chalmers said: "We had plans to play in the play-offs and that’s unchanged.

"It’s important and it maintains the integrity of the competition. We have always held that view and we voiced that view yesterday.

"We must earn our place at the next level. Every point counts and it’s all hands to the pump – competition at top of League One will be as active as ever."

Bulls currently trail League One leaders York City Knights by two points with two games to go but have a much superior points difference.

It means if things remain as they are at the end of the regular campaign, Bulls will have two shots at clinching promotion, providing they win their play-off semi-final.

Chalmers continued: "From the Bulls perspective it doesn’t change what we have to do and our mission. It’s taken a lot of time and energy.

"I’m really looking forward to being able to step away from it (the restructuring issue) and enjoy our team with our fans as we go into what is going to be a fight to earn our place. That’s sport and that’s where it should be decided – on the field."

The Bulls chief had been a vocal opponent of the Super League-led plan to scrap the 8s, which also means Championship and League One's share of funding faces being reduced after the current TV deal expires at the end of 2021.

As a member of the lower league advisory group, he had fought against the change, claiming it was not in the interests of the game as a whole.

But following the secret ballot, which saw around 68 per cent in favour of the proposals, Chalmers accepted defeat.

He said: "I have total respect for clubs in voting in a way in what they think is their best interest.

"We’ve laid out why we thought this wasn’t a good plan but the rest made a call.

"Put aside the percentage, a majority of clubs voted for it and you have to accept that is democracy at work.

"History will judge all the participants. At the end of the day, everyone got to vote – whether you agree with it or not, play on."

Chalmers claimed that nine Championship or League One clubs voted in favour of the proposal.

In paying tribute to his colleagues on the advisory board, which included Jon Flatman (York), Mark Sawyer (Dewsbury), Mark Campbell (Featherstone) and Kevin Nicholas (Batley), he said: "The advisory group had a clear role to get to the heart of the proposal - the implications, the ramifications – and to make that as plain as possible to all the Championsip and League One clubs.

"I want to congratulate the members of the advisory group who worked very hard and gave up a lot of time and energy and effort to help demystify things and get to a position.

"We took a view into what we thought was in the best interest and were clear to lay it all out and explain the reasons why - not just to other clubs but to fans and other stakeholders."