City joint-chairman Mark Lawn had the following to say in the T&A about City’s search for a new striker: “If we can get ourselves a 15-20 goal-a-year striker in January, then all well and good. That’s what we need, but it would have to be the right person and Phil’s got a list of targets. Hopefully we will get at least one (new player) in but we’ve been here before. We’re absolutely not getting involved in an auction. The pressure of the market will dictate.”
According to Sky Sports Bradford City are looking to extend the loan period of Jack Compton from Scottish First Division side Falkirk.
Compton’s deal is due to expire after the New Year’s Eve game at home to Shrewsbury Town and Parkinson is optimistic an extension can be agreed. The City boss is quoted as saying: “We’re speaking to Falkirk already regarding Jack and we’ll have to have more conversations with him. Obviously he’s available for Saturday anyway and hopefully we’ll get something sorted. I’m really disappointed for Reidy (Kyel Reid)but sometimes you get those injuries on the heavy grounds, especially with the explosive type of player that he is.”
The club is also said to be keen to extend the loan periods of Stoke City’s Andrew Davies and Notts County midfielder Ricky Ravenhill, as both are due to return to their parent clubs in the New year. Parkinson is also likely to extend the contract of Marcel Seip, the Dutch defenders 3-month deal expires after Saturdays game.
Parkinson said: “We backed up our win at Southend with a really good performance. Our energy levels were first-class and we kept it going, which was pleasing. Our closing down all over the field was exceptional and I thought our front two, James Hanson and Nahki Wells, really typified that with their performances. They chased everything, including lost causes.”
“I told the players that when you work as hard as that it is amazing – you get a bit of luck. We thought the player dived for the penalty. It was a big moment in the game. It could have been a different afternoon if that had gone in, but the miss lifted everything again.”
Striker James Hanson scored twice as City gained their biggest win of the season with a deserved 3-0 victory over Crewe at Valley Parade. The victory was the Bantams’ first at home in the league since October and ended Crewe’s four-match unbeaten run.
City went ahead after two minutes in fortunate circumstances. Jon McLaughlin’s long clearance was headed goalwards by Hanson and skipper David Artell’s headed clearance rebounded off the head of Nahki Wells, the ball looping over the head of Alex stopper Steve Phillips and into the net.
Both sides hit the post in an eventful first half, Carl Martin from a free-kick for Crewe and Hanson with deflected shot for City, but the visitors ought to have equalised after 56 minutes when they were awarded a penalty. Ricky Ravenhill brought down Nick Powell in the box, but Lee Bell’s spot-kick rebounded off the underside of the bar.
The Bantams made Crewe pay for this miss after 65 minutes when leading scorer Hanson put them 2-0 in front, hammering a low, right-footed shot into the net after seizing on a partial clearance. And the hitman put the result beyond doubt with City’s third goal six minutes from the end. Luke Oliver headed substitute Jack Compton’s free-kick into path of Hanson, who scored with a right-footed shot from 10 yards.
CITY: McLaughlin; Ramsden, Oliver, Seip, Davies; Jones (Syers, 90 mins), Ravenhill, Reid (Compton, 51 mins), Fagan; Hanson, Wells (Stewart, 75 mins). Subs not used: Duke, Threlfall.
The City boss told the club website: “I thought the match was very similar to the one at Gillingham. A game we dominated but couldn’t quite get the goal our efforts deserved. Tonight (Friday) we have played exceptionally well, extremely professional, and we’ve got that all important goal this time. It’s fantastic to win away from home, it’s a great boost for every one in the football club, but the way we have been playing on our travels recently, not just tonight, has been excellent. I am really pleased for the lads. It was a committed performance that was full of concentration for the whole game. Every player has done the job that was asked of them tonight and we got our rewards.”
“Me and Steve (Parkin) saw Southend play on Tuesday, they are a good side, but I said to the lads before the game tonight that we would win if they did their jobs. We listed the key areas of the game – the key points of our performance that we needed to get right – and we said to the players that if we do well in these key areas, we’ll win the game. I was confident of that. I was confident that we had the ability to beat this team. I said to the lads after the game that I had really meant that. I didn’t say that to build them up and then secretly feel not so sure inside, I genuinely felt we could beat Southend tonight if we did our jobs for the whole match, and we did. If they had won tonight, they’d have gone back top, so that shows how good a result this is for our lads. We’ve come here on a Friday night, with people up and down the country looking to see how Bradford would cope tonight, but we have coped with it very well. We were a strong and disciplined side tonight with quality going forward at times.”
Luke Oliver’s 88th-minute goal secured City’s a first win on the road this season. The centre-back scrambled the ball into the bottom corner of the Southend net from close range following Andrew Davies pass into the box. The win ended Southend’s hopes of returning to the top of the table but was just reward for a Bantams side who dominated for much of the match, with Kyel Reid proving a thorn in the Blues’ side.
City went closest early on with a Michael Flynn free-kick which was saved by Luke Daniels, while Southend did not test Jon McLaughlin in the first half. The hosts improved after the break and the introduction of Lee Sawyer and Anthony Grant resulted in the latter having their first shot on target, an effort easily held by McLaughlin.
Liam Dickinson forced McLaughlin to parry his free-kick from the edge of the area – but Oliver then grabbed the winner and the Bantams held on for four minutes of stoppage time.
CITY: McLaughlin, Ramsden, Davies, Oliver, Seip, Fagan, Flynn, Ravenhill, Reid (O’Brien 85), Hanson, Wells (Stewart 83). Unused substitutes: Duke,Jones,Compton.
Former Spurs striker Terry Dixon has left Valley Parade and signed for Blue Square Bet South club Dover Athletic.
Dixon was released by Spurs in 2008 and he then signed for West Ham the following year but he never managed to break into the first team and he was released in April 2010. last season he spent some time at Stevenage and non-league sides Ware and Tooting & Mitcham United. The 21-year-old agreed a one-year deal with City in August and was immediately loaned out to neighbours FC Halifax Town.
Bradford City Central midfielder Lacey has joined Blue Square Bet North club Vauxhall Motors on loan until 15th March.
City signed Lacey from Sheffield Wednesday in July 2011. The 18-year-old, who came through the ranks at Hillsborough, was released by the Owls in the summer and signed a one-year-deal at Valley Parade. Lacey has already spent a month at Rivacre Road earlier this season.
Parkinson said: “We responded well after going behind and showed a lot of character to come back into the game. It was a setback to go behind but the players showed great determination, saying to themselves We are not going to lose this game.”
“It was a great cross by Kyel Reid and a fantastic finish for the equaliser by the big man, James Hanson. Big players score important goals and he scored one. In the end, we are disappointed not to win the game. We then had three great chances to take all three points. We can do better than that with those sort of chances – we’ve got to make the ‘keeper make the save.”
James Hanson salvaged a late point for City against fellow strugglers Plymouth, who climbed off the bottom of the Football League following the 1-1 draw at Valley Parade. There were just five minutes of normal time remaining when Hanson levelled to hand us a share of the points to keep them three points off bottom spot, which is now occupied by Dagenham & Redbridge.
The Bantams dominated the first half but the nearest they came to scoring was a minute before the break when skipper Michael Flynn saw his shot cleared off the line by defender Darren Purse with keeper Jake Cole beaten. Plymouth went in front in the 59th minute from their first corner of the game. The home defence failed to clear Will Atkinson`s flag-kick and skipper Simon Walton’s 15-yard shot was deflected into the net by Craig Sutherland.
The Bantams pressed hard for an equaliser and their pressure paid off in the 85th minute when Kyel Reid delivered a low cross from the left and Hanson scored with a superbly-taken left-footed shot just inside the near post. Flynn and Ricky Ravenhill missed good chances to win the game for the home side in the closing stages as Plymouth were reduced to 10 men when Onismor Bhasera was sent off for a second bookable offence.
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