Bradford City's superb form goes on, but guarded optimism remains amongst a scarred fanbase

Yesterday at 02:19 AM

By Jason McKeown

If anything, the mood amongst Bradford City supporters isn't keeping pace with the sudden ascent of its team. Once again here, the Bantams won and won comfortably. They edged a tight game, where they never really looked like they were going to surrender the first half advantage Calum Kavanagh's neat finish gave them. This latest success was warmly embraced by the crowd at full time, but the levels of joy and excitement still seem reserved compared to the highly promising situation that's developing.

Because the stats are so encouraging. Kavanagh's seventh goal of the campaign earned the Bantams a ninth victory in 11 games. It's a fifth win on the bounce. Just one defeat in 13. Only two league losses since the end of October. Six home victories on the trot. And a 10th league home win of the campaign – for context, City haven't won more than nine home games in an entire season since 2019/20.

And look what's it done to the league table. Look at that lovely league table. City are third – their highest league placing since November 2019. They're joint second for that matter, sandwiched on 47 points between Notts County and Crewe. Automatic promotion suddenly looks very much a possibility. And beneath them, City have opened up a four-point cushion on eighth-placed Salford. Go and study that lovely table again. I promise you won't get bored of it.

And yet for all this, giddiness readings amongst the fanbase remain on the low, reserved side. This is not Valley Parade of 2012/13, 2015/16, 2016/17 or even 2022/23 – where the stadium was rocking from the vibrations of one of the best atmospheres in the country. On the evening here, empty seats were notable across the home sections (a year ago we'd have talked more about how the true attendance was so low the club was embarrassed to reveal it). The atmosphere was eerily quiet for long periods. The 100 or so travelling Morecambe supporters easily out-sang the thousands of City fans.  

We are wary and we are scarred. Season upon season of disappointment and angst has taught us harsh lessons against getting carried away. Even now, with City in such blistering form, you're waiting for it all to go wrong.

Over the last 12 months the frustration at the post-2017 decline has significantly grown amongst the fanbase, especially towards those who own and run the football club. It has become less of a focal point of late – but hasn't disappeared. It was only a month ago, after all, that the supporter mood was bleak enough to prompt an open letter to Stefan Rupp from the Bradford City Fans Independent Group. For fans to talk about boycotting the Boxing Day clash with Port Vale. Much has changed on the field since – yet as a fanbase, we're too long in the tooth to disregard the possibility they will change again.

But that sense of holding back enthusiasm probably won't last much longer, especially after another night of successful bridge building. I mean, they've just beaten a team bottom of the league at home! Get out the bunting! Release the celebratory DVD! This is not what Bradford City do. The banana skins littered on the floor here are normally ones we slip and fall over. Maybe this year, for once, the big book of Bradford Infamy won't need a new chapter writing.

They certainly weren't tripping up here. Good habits were maintained from recent weeks, even if the same heights weren't achieved. The game itself certainly wasn't a classic. Pretty awful, in fact. A fairly average City performance, but one good enough to win the game. These are the type of wins that teams who get promoted typically have the know-how to carve out. The hard yards that are soon forgotten, but which make all the difference come the end of the season.

This game was won and lost inside the opening 30 minutes where City displayed good character and traits to play on the front foot and push Morecambe back. Richie Smallwood had a couple of efforts at goal, and should really have scored after a lovely move involving Brad Halliday and Kavanagh teed up the City skipper in the box, but he couldn't beat Harry Burgoyne.

Soon enough though, the Bantams scored. A typical high press City attack saw the ball continually driven forward and Morecambe struggle to clear their lines. Aden Baldwin won a press, Antoni Sarcevic saw a shot blocked by Jamie Stott, but Kavanagh pounced on the loose ball, took a touch, and lifted the ball past Burgoyne, and City had a lead against the division's third-lowest scorers.

Truth is not an awful lot happened over the hour that followed. City didn't kick on, never got out of second gear, and played within themselves. This was not the rampant high tempo football that leaders Walsall couldn't live with at the weekend. The home team largely kept Morecambe at arm's length, but better opposition sides might have taken advantage of their labouring performance.

It didn't help City's rhythm that they operated for more than an hour without two of their best-performing players. Graham Alexander had made a couple of changes, reasoning that the vital but injury prone Lewis Richards and Alex Pattison would be better recharging on the bench, in the midst of a flurry of Saturday-Tuesday game weeks. Richards' role was taken up by Tyreik Wright, who largely did fine but continues to struggle to fully convince. The resting of Pattison allowed Alexander to give Tommy Leigh a full debut, which saw Sarcevic pushed back into central midfield alongside Smallwood.

It was all fine, but without Pattison sitting deep and bursting forward with the ball, City lost some of their thrust. Sarcevic did okay dropping back, but has proven he can make a greater impact higher up the pitch. It mattered more here when Sarcevic lost the ball or didn't quite provide the energetic cover Pattison has offered alongside Smallwood. All of which stopped City functioning to the same standards they've been recently showing.

That gave Morecambe some encouragement, and they certainly began the second half brightly. For first 15 minutes, they exerted pressure, if not achieving many shots on goal. Lots of free kicks were won in dangerous positions but wasted. The best – and possibly only real chance of note – came when defender Max Taylor saw a header at goal draw a brilliant save from Sam Walker. Sufficient concern grew at that point to cause Alexander to act, and Richards, Pattison and Calum Johnson were introduced midway through the second half. These switches enabled City to regain their authority.    

It meant for a second half that had an edge to it, but was hardly dripping in tension. And that brings us back to talking about a low key atmosphere. Possibly it's because the redeployment of the atmosphere section has been such a painful mistake. But, overall this season, the atmosphere levels on matchday are still nowhere near what they've been in the past when the team is firing to this sort of level. And that says a lot about the cautious mood.

Perhaps part of the guarded optimism of supporters here came from the presence of Derek Adams at Valley Parade for the first time since he was sacked three years ago. An uncomfortable reminder of mistakes City have made in the past. Remember when we thought we were guaranteed to romp to promotion just because we'd appointed Adams? Don't worry about actually recruiting a decent team, invest in the cult of manager! Adams' failure at Valley Parade was a lesson that you can't short-cut these things. And it's taken us a little bit too long to build a proper structure and strategy.

Adams denied us the pleasure of watching him squirm in the dugout here, choosing to watch the game from the press box and relay instructions to the bench by mobile phone. Maybe he didn't want the humiliation, or more realistically maybe he felt his presence on the touchline would fire up the home crowd when it suited his team to keep us quiet. “Not much atmosphere in the place and that’s credit to us” was Adam’s post-match verdict.

Seeing a Derek Adams team at Valley Parade again was like bumping into an ex-partner long after the pain and bitterness has faded and you've moved on, observing they’re struggling in their own life, and beginning to feel a little sorry for them. Adams had described the last week as his "hardest in football". It came after Morecambe revealed they do not have proof of funds for the rest of the season, which amongst many things means they can't sign any players during this transfer window. Adams had two new faces lined up, but had to go back and tell them it couldn't happen. On Saturday, former City striker Lee Angol was sent off. Adams disputed the decision, darkly joking they would appeal "if we can afford it".

It might not be as bleak for Morecambe as it seems. They've yet to collect the windfall of their FA Cup day out at Chelsea, and talks continue to rage on over Kuljeet Singh Momi buying the club. But after falling to the bottom of League Two on Saturday, Morecambe's Football League status is in grave, grave jeopardy. Not being able to strengthen a squad already lacking puts Adams in a tough spot. It will be some achievement if he can guide them to safety from here.

"We just lacked that final bit of taking a big opportunity in the game," was Adams' generous full time verdict. They're trying, but Morecambe's form is the opposite of the Bantams. City have now won nine in 11. The Shrimpers have now lost nine in 11. They've scored just three goals over that period, and the last one of those came all the way back on New Years Day. In their favour, they don't get hammered very often. Only six of their 17 defeats have been by more than one goal. So as much as we might have hoped City could batter them here, that was always unlikely.

Instead, City can take the positives of winning while resting up key players. Performing solidly if not spectacularly. The back three were decent enough. Leigh didn't have the most striking of full debuts, but showed some nice touches, clever flicks and good running. Smallwood was once again excellent in the middle of the park. Bobby Pointon always full of invention and creativity, deservedly scooping the sponsor's player of the match. In the closing stages, City could and probably should have put the game to bed but wasted big opportunities. Nevertheless, they got the job done. With three clean sheets in a row to boot.  “The pleasing thing is we didn’t give anything cheap or silly away,” Alexander beamed.

Nothing groundbreaking was learned here. And little about the night will live long in the memory. But to be joint second gives the club an impetus which sets up a really exciting final 19 games of the season. The division is wide open, with even Walsall suddenly wobbling at the top. And though the streaky nature of Alexander's record at Valley Parade offers warnings the situation could quickly revert to struggle, City have a real platform to plough on from here.

It's there for them, just as they're finding their swagger.

Next up is Wimbledon, with the third best home record in the league (W8 D3 L2), before a run of three games against League Two strugglers. If they can emerge from the weekend's trip to the capital still unbeaten this calendar year – or better still with a sixth victory on the trot – there's not going to be many reasons left for Bradford City supporters to hold back from revelling in the feelgood factor.