Fortress Valley Parade- Bradford City return to winning ways against Peterborough  

Written by Lee Pasquariello

It’s mad how quickly in football things can change. Last weekend and the beginning of this week, my writing was focused on a difficult and frustrating afternoon and how our recent run of form and tactics were starting to become a massive concern. But today is the total opposite, a 2-0 win and one of the most dominant performances of the season over Peterborough has lifted the mood once again between the fanbase. 

Two changes were made ahead of this match after a disappointing afternoon last week, with Antoni Sarcevic and Bobby Pointon coming back into the starting lineup in place of Paul Mullin and also Matt Pennington, which showed to me clear intent that Graham Alexander was setting us up to be more attacking, as he dropped a centre back for a more attack minded option in the midfield.  Kayden Jackson was the main striker. These changes got a few mixed reviews online for some reason, but personally I wasn’t against it because they are both crucial to this team, and they can link up well, and that is exactly what we did. 

City wasted no time as they looked to start strongly, and the first goal came in the fourth minute. It was quite a weird one, a long ball was sent forward to Tyreik Wright who sent a very high cross aimed towards Jackson. Because of how high it was though, ex City keeper Alex Bass in the Peterborough goal could only punch it to Bobby Pointon on the edge of the box, who hit it first time. From my viewpoint at the top of the kop (and probably many other fans) it looked like the original cross was going over the stand and out of the ground. This message I received from my dad after the goal sums it up perfectly! 

“10 seconds before that went in I said what the f*** is that”. 

Seriously though, these fast starts are exactly what we’ve been missing for months. We were passing well and going forward at every opportunity. It actually reminded me of how we were at the start of the season, and we should have scored more as well. Sarcevic had the best chance for me soon after the goal though, Wright sent a perfect long ball to him where he was completely unmarked, but he decided to chip the keeper instead of another option which would have been better, such as taking a touch and then shooting. Jenson Metcalfe and Jackson had a few chances as well, but I noticed they tried to pass it into the goal instead of properly shooting, and on another day the first half probably finishes 4-0 to City.   

Peterborough were adamant they should have been given a penalty in the first half after a tackle by Aden Baldwin, but I was sat directly behind the incident and to me it looked a perfect tackle. Credit to the referee for not giving it, as another one probably would have done. 

It was a really dominant half for City, and the second half started in a similar fashion. In the 51^st minute our lead was doubled by Jackson. After a great run from Josh Neufville on the right-hand side he was able to send in a great cross for Jackson to head into the bottom corner to score his first goal for the club.  

After this goal it was like every time we went forward, we looked really threatening. We were dominant and were really testing the Peterborough keeper. The best chance for me was from a Metcalfe free kick which hit the post.  

There was also a home debut for Ethan Wheatley, and it started in a very similar style to his actual debut, with him having a glorious chance within seconds of coming on. It was a pretty similar move to last week, and it was once again saved. It’s still early days for him but I really feel that he could be a decent option for us up front, as his pace and ability to get into decent positions is genuinely impressive.  

Opinions and final thoughts 

There’s not really any other way to put it, but that today was a performance of absolute dominance. To see City produce a massive 29 shots whilst limiting Peterborough to only 4 is exactly the type of stat we’ve waited months to see. After a difficult period, with only 2 wins before this one since the start of January, it wasn’t a result that was just needed, it was an absolutely crucial step that allows us to hopefully put another good run together. 

The next few weeks will be a test though, as we are starting a Saturday-Tuesday schedule. In the league it’s not just about the best starting 11, but it’s who can stay fit, so I can see Graham Alexander rotating the squad some games in order to maintain the fitness of the team.  

The timing of Max Power’s suspension is not good for City. Missing our captain for the next two games after picking up 10 bookings could be a massive loss to our leadership on the pitch, so it means that someone else will have to step up and dictate the tempo of the midfield.

We now have three days until we are back at Valley Parade once again to host Stockport. For me, it’s going to be a difficult game, but it’s also a massive opportunity to make a statement. If we really want to be in and around the playoffs this season, it’s games like these we really need everyone to be up for. 

Finally, this win proves my point in the opinion piece earlier this week. Valley Parade truly is a fortress. Graham Alexander and his team have really made Valley Parade a ground that teams hate going to, and also the atmosphere has been a massive factor to it. But again, like i said in the opinion piece, if we’re to achieve our aims this season performances like these have to be every single game, home or away. If we can do that, then there’s no limit in where this team can go.