News / Pre-season friendlies

England head for Valley Parade

League Two side Bradford City will play host to an England Under-19s European Championship qualifier against Slovakia later this month.

Brian Eastick's squad will play three of their group matches in Yorkshire, with the clash against Slovakia taking place at Valley Parade on Friday, May 29.

England are scheduled to play Bosnia-Herzegovina at Doncaster's Keepmoat Stadium on May 27 and take on old rivals Scotland at Sheffield United's Bramall Lane on June 1.

Bosnia will take on Slovakia in another group match at Valley Parade on June 1.

If England finish top of their group they will progress to the competition finals in Ukraine in July.




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Championship side Barnsley will visit Valley Parade as part of City's pre-season preparations.

Simon Davey's Tykes will face City on Saturday, July 25th.

City have announced four friendlies, which begin with a clash at neighbours Park Avenue on Wednesday, July 15.

Four days later, they head to KitKat Crescent to take on FA Trophy finalists York.

The Bantams will also travel to Derbyshire on Tuesday, July 28 for a match against Alfreton, who are managed by former City boss Nicky Law.

With Tuesday, July 21 and Saturday, August 1 still vacant, City are expected to add more games.




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  Bateson one for future at City

City have made an offer to teenage right back Jonathan Bateson.

The 19-year-old Blackburn product finished last season on trial at
Valley Parade and featured in reserve games against Grimsby and Rotherham.

Bateson impressed Stuart McCall enough to earn a permanent deal.

McCall said: "He's only a young lad on the minimum money but he's one we
think might come through.

"I wouldn't say he's definitely one for now to go in the first team
straight away – but we were saying the same thing about Luke O'Brien
last year, so it shows what can happen.

"Jonathan has played a couple of times for the reserves and trained with
the first team lads at the back end of the season. He looked comfortable
and confident.

"He's got a good pedigree coming from Blackburn and has fitted in well
since he's been training with us."

Bateson captained the Blackburn academy side but his chances of breaking
into the reserves were hampered by a cartilage operation which ruled him
out for much of the 2007-08 campaign.

He made one appearance for the Rovers second string last season before
spending a month on loan at Buxton in the UniBond League.

He was spotted by David Wetherall and Wayne Jacobs at the exit trials
for Premier League players who have been released.

Meanwhile, McCall is waiting on a response to the contracts he has
offered to the club's senior players.

He said: "They've got about three weeks to decide. The offers have just
gone out so they probably only got them on Saturday morning."


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  City players should grab it while they can

City's out-of-contract players were today warned: You'd be mad not to
take what's on the table.

Lee Bullock, Matt Clarke and Zesh Rehman have all been made reduced
offers to stay at Valley Parade. Peter Thorne will also be asked to play
for less if he agrees to carry on.

Stuart McCall and number two Wayne Jacobs have already taken pay cuts to
fit in with the smaller budget and the club expect the squad to follow
suit.

City legend John Hendrie insists that the players have no choice but to
accept because of the current economic climate.

Hendrie said: "There is not the same money knocking about football at
the lower levels as before. Players have got to look outside their own
little cocoons and see the real world.

"People are getting laid off everywhere; I've been involved in
redundancies in my family and friends.

"There are always so many players without a job every year. You look at
the number who fall by the wayside and drop into non-league.

"It's dog eat dog in the lower divisions. Players have to take a reality
check – or they will be out on their ear.

"It's a brave man who knocks back a contract offer hoping for something
better to come along.

"Even if you think something else is lined up, I can assure you from
being a manager that he will have two or three irons in the fire for
that position.

"So my advice is: if you get the offer of a contract, get your backside
in there and sign it."

T&A columnist Hendrie also believes that contracts have to be more
incentive-based to save cash on those who are not featuring on the pitch.

He added: "You can only play 11 at a time or 14 at most. There might be
a squad of 20 players but why pay them all the same rate when six of
them aren't used?

"When players are injured they get a basic wage, even in the summer. It
should be the same for everyone, with incentives for appearances."

Players have until the middle of next month to sign their contracts.
Player of the year Luke O'Brien, Joe Colbeck, Jon McLaughlin and Leon
Osborne are also thinking over new deals.

Hendrie added: "I don't think the players have any option but to
seriously consider what is on offer. There's no point in being flippant
about it.

"In the division Bradford City are in, the days of silly wages are gone
because there are so many players out there who will come in and sign
for a lot less money."


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  McCall wants players with right stuff

Stuart McCall will not adopt the hard-sell technique with his summer
transfer targets.

With next term's budget cut by more than a third, the City chief has
altered his approach to the market.

He wants potential recruits to convince him that they are keen on a
Valley Parade move for the right motives.

McCall explained: "Last year we went out to sell the club to get people.
If players had other clubs to choose from in League One, that's what we
had to do.

"I was bending over backwards to get people here because it was the
right thing to do at the time.

"But this year I don't need to sell the club. The club sells itself. Now
we'll see how desperate people are to come.

"I want people to come to play for us for the right reasons. I fire the
question back at them and ask: 'Why do you want to come here?' "It's not
going to be for financial reasons but if they say the crowds, the
ambition and the potential of the place, then that's great."

McCall admits his hands are currently tied to an extent because of the
need to get the bigger earners off the wage bill, so he has been forced
to adopt a patient approach.

"I've had agents on offering us players but the line for now is that we
would be interested if they are willing to wait," he said.

"Whoever's out of contract at this moment in time is going to find it
tough until they have proper wage demands.

"You only have to look at what's happening. Every day clubs are
releasing eight, ten or 12 people. There are so many players available
out there.

"People come on the phone to me and when they hear what we are offering,
agents are aghast. They see we've got 12,000 home crowds – but they are
12,000 fans paying £6 to get in.

"The ticket offer has been a fantastic gesture because we want more
people to watch us play. But it doesn't mean we have the finances that
those not connected with the club might think."