L2 L2-4 (H) Rochdale Saturday December 29, 2012. K.O. 3:00PM. #bcafc

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Signings, Loans and Injuries


Injuries
Andrew Davies, knee, Out 4 months (from Nov 1st)
Luke Oliver, Achillies, out for the 2012/13 season

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Match Media & Stats

Head to Head
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http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/sport/sportbcfc/sport_bantams_pics2012/
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Final whistle - match report


Parkinson admits Bantams were not at the races as they find it heavy going against Rochdale

7:30am Monday 31st December 2012

By Simon Parker

Bradford City 2 Rochdale 4

Phil Parkinson's reinvention of City in 2012 has been such that some joked he should have been named in the New Year's Honours List.

Most things that the Bantams boss has touched have turned to gold for this success-starved club, with a concerted push to escape League Two allied with a certain cup run.

This season you can count the days when Parkinson – and City – have got it wrong on one hand.

Saturday was one of them, as the manager was quick to admit afterwards.

Against a Rochdale side that made a mockery of their mid-table billing, City were second best in every department – defence, midfield, attack and on the sidelines.

Parkinson insisted he was as culpable as the rest for a setback that ended a memorable year with an unforeseen jolt.

Rochdale's reputation for killing off the top teams is well-founded. City's scalp was added to that of Rotherham and Gillingham, both away, Cheltenham, who were also hit for four at Spotland, and a point at new leaders Port Vale.

The fact that Dale are still only up to tenth shows a mental slackness against those sides they should be expected to roll over. But you can guarantee now that John Coleman's men will be seriously contesting the top seven when it matters.

Rochdale's Achilles heel has been a generous defence – only the bottom two had conceded more. With no clean sheet since October, City fancied their chances on the goal hunt.

So Parkinson unleashed Kyel Reid for his first league start since getting injured in the first meeting between the sides.

He also gambled on sticking with Nathan Doyle, another of the victims to the Christmas bug, in the crucial midfield battle where Rochdale had the extra man.

The plan was to attack the visitors down the flanks. Instead, City found themselves starved of possession by Dale's grip on the middle area, where Peter Cavanagh bossed his personal contest with Gary Jones, the man he replaced as Rochdale skipper.

Nobody was more fired up than Jones to impress against the club where he holds the record for most appearances. The reception he got from the away fans before kick-off illustrated the affection in which he is still held t'other side of the Pennines.

But Jones, like his team-mates, never got going. Cavanagh called it the start of a new Rochdale era; certainly the present blue triumphed comfortably over the past.

City could find little room to get through. In contrast, Rochdale's breaks were lethal and incisive with some short, sharp passing as impressive as anything Parkinson's side have encountered all season – Arsenal included.

Parkinson realised the folly of his team selection at half-time and brought on Will Atkinson to tighten the midfield and give City some more control on the ball. But the damage had already been done.

By then Dale had put four past a surprisingly out-of-sorts Matt Duke and City were hurtling towards only their third home defeat.

Parkinson admitted: "We lacked intensity in all departments, in terms of the way we defended, our strength in challenges and obviously when we had possession.

"I've got to hold my hand up as well because the balance of the team wasn't right.

"We know Rochdale score goals but they do concede them. I had to pick a team that would be strong enough to deal with them going forward but physically we were second best.

"We didn't pass the ball to each other, didn't get it down and play and create anything. But the lads have been magnificent this season and we're a lot better than we showed."

For opposite number Coleman, there is no place like the Coral Windows Stadium.

This was his sixth visit to Valley Parade and he is still to be beaten. City may have banished their Accrington jinx on Boxing Day but the Coleman curse lives on.

"It's a fantastic place for me," he smiled. "I was linked to come here (as manager) about 18 months ago and think I might have lost by now if I'd got it!"

It was a bit longer than that, nearer two years, when Accrington's hefty compensation demands kyboshed Coleman's potential move to City before Peter Jackson was appointed.

Few would complain with how it has turned out since Parkinson's arrival. One bolt-from-the-blue result, however unwelcome, should not deflect from a first half of the season that even the most hard-bitten fan would have snapped up.

City have responded positively to previous bad results and we shouldn't expect any less at Morecambe tomorrow.

But this was still a chastening lesson in what will happen when the team are collectively off the pace.

The warning signs were flashing as early as the sixth minute. Bobby Grant, sent off against City in October, made amends immediately with a neat pass for Terry Gornell to blast past Duke at his near post.

But City's resilience was straight to the fore with an equaliser from the penalty spot after Alan Connell was sent tumbling by Ryan Edwards.

City missed the explosive pace of Nahki Wells to stretch the play and Connell's inclusion does change the focus of their play, something that the team have struggled to come to terms with.

But you cannot fault the former Swindon man's personal efforts. His spot-kick double took his goal tally for December to five – plus another perfect penalty in the Capital One quarter-final shoot-out.

He now leads James Hanson as City's distant second top scorer behind Wells.

But no sooner had Connell got the Bantams back on terms than Rochdale struck again. It was the pattern of the first half.

Andrew Tutte exploited the conditions to skid a drive beneath the keeper and then Ashley Grimes extended Dale's advantage with a well-struck volley after City failed to deal properly with a corner.

Once again, their salvage hopes were given a helping hand by Rochdale's generosity – literally in the case of Phil Edwards, who got both mitts to James Meredith's dangerous cross.

So Connell stepped up once more to outfox Josh Lillis from 12 yards, this time hammering his penalty into the roof of the net after placing the first in the bottom corner.

Valley Parade rose in anticipation of a glorious fightback mark two. Instead they got a fourth Rochdale goal within four minutes, Gornell exploiting the space between the two centre halves and a keeper in no man's land to loop home his header from the edge of the penalty area.

Connell was a coat of paint away from a hat-trick, flashing a header past the near post from Reid's cross.

It would have been a carbon copy of his winner three days earlier but the ball rattled the stanchion instead and the premature cheers were cut short.

That was as close as City came on a day when they were well short of normal service.
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When the dust settled - match report


'Important we don't get too down' says Connell after Bradford City setback

8:00am Monday 31st December 2012

By Simon Parker

Alan Connell insisted that City cannot afford to dwell on their heaviest home loss of the season.

Phil Parkinson's troops have the opportunity to get the Rochdale defeat straight out their system with tomorrow's trip to Morecambe.

The 4-2 setback was only the third time they had been beaten at Valley Parade this term and cost City the chance to jump into the automatic promotion places.

Connell netted two penalties to take his tally to five in five games but the Bantams were swept away in a first-half goal rush.

The experienced striker stressed there can be no lingering after-effects as City head into another frantic month to kick off 2013.

He said: "We won't sweep it under the carpet and there are one or two things we need to improve on. But it's our first league defeat in a long time and it's important we don't get too down.

"We've had a tremendous amount of games this season but we'd much rather be playing every Saturday and Tuesday. Bring it on, we've got a great squad.

"There's another tough schedule ahead and we've had one already. But we've got enough strength in depth in the squad.

"It was a strange game. Momentum is massive in football but every time we got back into it we conceded straight away.

"We just had to hang in there a bit longer but then we'd let in another bad goal.

"They kept the ball really well, whereas whenever we did put passes together we looked dangerous but that didn't happen often enough.

"It was a very frustrating day but you'll have setbacks in any season and it gives us even more incentive to respond against Morecambe."

Connell's personal form is a consolation and he is now up to eight goals for the club.

He added: "I've enjoyed December. Before my goal against Torquay which set me off, I was pleased with my performances but felt I was doing everything but scoring.

"Five goals this month and a penalty against Arsenal is something to be pleased about.

"I was very close to a hat-trick with a similar header to the one I scored against Accrington. I caught the ball really sweet but it just went wide – and I thought then that it wasn't going to be our day."

With Nahki Wells out ill, Ross Hannah came on for his first City appearance in over nine months. But he still looks to be heading out of Valley Parade, with Grimsby leading the race.

Parkinson said: "Grimsby made an offer and we're considering it but obviously we need him at the minute. The bench was everybody who was fit.

"We'll have to wait and see if Nahki's available for Morecambe. The doctor saw him and said he was best off missing this one.

"But it showed we missed him because he does carry that threat in behind (the defence). When you have that ability to stretch the pitch it does open it up for other players."

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Important Morecambe ticket update

PUBLISHED 08:01 31st December 2012

The football club would like to inform all supporters intending to attend City's New Year's Day fixture at Morecambe that this npower League 2 fixture is now an ALL-TICKET match.


This means any City fans travelling to the match to support Phil Parkinson's men MUST purchase their ticket(s) before match-day. NO tickets will be available to City supporters at Morecambe's Globe Arena on the day.


The club now only have a very limited number of tickets left for the visiting section at the Globe Arena.


These particular tickets are for Morecambe's covered standing section behind the goal. All of the club's allocated seating tickets have sold out.


The Ticket Office at the Coral Windows Stadium will be open today (Monday 31 December 2012) between 9:00am and 5:00pm to allow supporters to snap up the remaining Morecambe tickets.

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Bradford City's ten magic moments of 2012
http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/sport/sportbcfc/10130969.print/

11:20am Saturday 29th December 2012

By Simon Parker

It's traditional as another year winds to the end to look back on some of those memorable moments of the previous 12 months.

When you're talking Bradford City matches, that can often mean plenty of barrel-scraping – especially if you want to get past three or four.

It's fair to say we haven't been overloaded with happy times in recent seasons.

But look back on 2012 – the second half of it at least – and suddenly you're spoilt for choice.

Whatever transpires between now and the final game of the campaign on April 28 – or maybe the play-offs the following month – there have already been stand-out moments that nobody will forget for a long time.

In the case of a certain fixture on December 11, those who were there will remember and treasure it forever. It really was a case of Christmas coming a fortnight early.

So here's my top ten run-down from Bradford City 2012.

10. CITY 3 CHELTENHAM 1, October 20

Cheltenham at home the previous season had been one of the lower points of Phil Parkinson's reign. But the Bantams boss loved this one as his team showed bucketloads of fight to claw their way back against a promotion rival.

Going a goal down, City levelled by half-time and then scored two more in a riveting second half, capped with a superbly-worked first goal from left back James Meredith.

9. BRISTOL ROVERS 3 CITY 3, November 24

A draw away to a side at the wrong end of the table does not usually sound like a result to crow about. But factor in that City went behind three times in appalling weather and this was a classic example of a team refusing to quit.

Guy Branston, of all people, headed Rovers in front with his first touch for his latest club and only a minute gone. But every time the home side struck, back came the battling Bantams – and they had enough chances to have won it by the end.

8. NOTTS COUNTY 0 CITY 1, August 11

The Capital One Cup adventure began way back in the middle of the summer holidays. The league season did not kick off for another week as City took their first steps at League One Notts County.

Few gave them much of a chance of progressing past Keith Curle's highly-fancied Magpies. But in a sign of things to come, City frustrated their hosts for 90 goalless minutes before James Hanson delivered the coup de grace early in extra-time with a superb curling finish from the edge of the box.

7. BARNET 0 CITY 4, February 28

Craig Fagan had a mixed time in his year at City but his performance up front at Underhill reeked of Premier League class.

Aided by Darren Dennehy's early red card, the Bantams ripped their hosts apart with Fagan at the forefront. His penalty got the ball rolling on the way to as convincing an away win as you can get.

6. CITY 5 WIMBLEDON 1, August 25

Everything City touched seemed to go in during a dominant first half. The Dons were swept aside 5-1 – with all the goals flying in before the break.

There were five different scorers, including hapless Wimbledon defender Curtis Haynes-Brown on his loan debut from Yeovil. The day got worse for him as his afternoon ended early on a stretcher – but Dons boss Terry Brown still felt he was their best player.

5. WATFORD 1 CITY 2, August 28

City stunned Gianfranco Zola's Championship side with a first ever win at Vicarage Road – and did it the hard way by coming from behind.

Kyel Reid levelled late on before Garry Thompson emerged as the 94th-minute hero with his first goal for the club. More from him later ...

4. NORTHAMPTON 1 CITY 3, April 14

Nahki Wells, pictured below, scored the club's first hat-trick since the days of Peter Thorne to rubberstamp their survival in League Two.

Last season was a difficult one for all concerned but Wells removed any lingering nerves about safety with a clinical poaching display on his favourite away ground.

3. CITY 3 BURTON 2, September 25

Some defenders have got a reputation for scoring goals – Stephen Darby is not one of them.

But the right back burst from the shadows as the unlikeliest hero with a 25-yard blast in extra-time to seal a memorable fightback.

City were staring down the barrel at 2-0 with only seven minutes of the Capital One Cup third round to go. But substitute Nahki Wells rattled in a quickfire double to force the added half-hour – and Darby's right foot did the rest.

2. WIGAN 0 CITY 0 (won 4-2 on pens), October 30

More than 5,000 fans travelled across the Pennines to see City tackle their first Premier League opposition for seven years.

The loss of both centre halves and Kyel Reid against Burton three days before had seemingly killed off any hope of an upset. Only nobody had told the team.

Roared on by their army of supporters, City matched the hosts for 120 goalless minutes before picking them off, inevitably, in the penalty shoot-out.

1. CITY 1 ARSENAL 1 (won 3-2 on pens), December 11

It wasn't just a sold-out Valley Parade but a watching nation that witnessed the biggest cup shock of the lot. Arsene Wenger brought all his big guns but it was City who fired the first shot when Garry Thompson's volley sent the place into raptures.

City were three minutes from a sensational win when Thomas Vermaelen headed the equaliser, the only time the defence switched off all night.

But once again, the underdogs negotiated the added half hour without a scare. And once again City were up to the spot-kick challenge, Vermaelen's miss sending the club through to their first ever League Cup semi-final and two dates with Aston Villa.

That's not a bad way to kick off 2013. And maybe this time next year we'll be looking back on a first visit to Wembley since 1996 – or even more than one ...

Happy New Year!

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