David Stockdale is a quality keeper. I suggested City signing him on a season long loan before Evans signed. In the Summer, Fulham signed 3 new keepers to add to the 2 they already had.

It was obvious he wouldn't get a game at Craven Cottage this season, so we should have tried to bring him to the club. Let's hope he is rusty tomorrow or we could find it difficult to score again.

I feel Stockdale will be out to impress. If only to get first team regular footy. He could become a 'Hero' at Rotherham, if they are able to keep him, for the remainder of their season: By playing a major role in preventing their relegation and possible Bankruptcy!.

After Stockdale's performance today, I wouldn't be surprised if Rotherham sent him back. He was the 'difference' between the sides.

From where we were sat, it was difficult to tell whether he should have got closer to O'Brien's strike. However, he definitely goofed for Law's shot. Ironically, it was seconds after Evans' "Gordon Banks" save kept the score 1-0.

Yet again, we just didn't get going in the first half. We went with a 4-4-2 formation, with Law in the middle alongside McLaren. Osborne was brought back (but on the left-hand side) with Daley on the right. The only other change saw Boulding start instead of Conlon.

From Rotherham's first attack, inside the opening minute, they almost (and perhaps should have) scored. Evans made a good stop, but in fairness, their striker should have buried it.

In the opening stages, we just couldn't get hold of the ball and when we did, McLaren seemed to want to pass backwards all the time and Osborne just got nudged off the ball too easily. It just kept coming back.

Our defence seemed to go to sleep all too often. TJ was skinned every time their left-winger got the ball (what was his comments in the T&A this week?). He often dived in and missed his tackle, giving the Rotherham player chances to get his crosses in. As for M.Clarke, he almost gifted them a goal on a few occasions. He was solid in the air, but as soon as they had the ball on the floor, he was less convincing. At one stage, he took the ball off one of their players and just prodded it straight back to a Rotherham player just outside the area. Why can't he find our players so effectively?

Wave after wave of Rotherham attack ended in disappointment for the home side (if you can call them that). Then out of the blue, O'Brien took a pass and charged towards their box. He hit it and watched the ball deflect of a Rotherham player and towards the keeper's bottom left-hand corner. Somehow, the keeper got a hand to it and touched it around the post. Half time 0-0

The second half started with City finally taking the game to the hosts. For the first time in the match, we looked like a side near the top of the table. Thorne pulled out wide right and put in a great cross. Unfortunately, nobody attacked the ball and it went all the way across the 6-yard box.

Rotherham started to come more into the game again and had a couple of good chances to score. They attacked at win for a period of 10 minutes and only good blocking and poor finishing kept the scores level.

McCall finally decided to change things and started warming up T.Clarke. He was stripping for action when McLaren went down under a heavy challenge. Tom came on to replace McLaren immediately. Was he going to come on for McLaren even before the injury??

The Huddersfield loanee looked much more composed on the ball and started breaking up the Rotherham attacks. McCall then made his second substitution when he brought off the ineffective Osborne for Conlon and pushed Boulding out wide.

Then, my Man of the Match, (even at this stage) O'Brien, galloped forward and unleashed a drive from about 20 yards out. It went right across the goalkeeper and into the far corner. We couldn't believe it and the away section went wild. A handful of fans managed to run onto the pitch.

Within a few minutes, Rotherham should have been level. A header across our goal found Broughton unmarked and his header looked destined for the net. However, Evans managed to pull off a wonder-save. With one hand, he tipped the ball onto the bar and watched it come straight back down. We played the ball out immediately and hit them on the counter. The ball was played to Law just inside the area. His shot went straight past the defence and their on-loan keeper. We couldn't believe it. We had been outplayed for a majority of the game, yet found ourselves 2-0 up.

However, O'Brien wasn't finished yet. He darted forward again and skipped past several challenges before being brought down just the other side of the white-wash. Rotherham cleared from the resulting free-kick, but City went on to record a valuable win in a very strange setting. Let's just hope we don't have to sit in the Don Valley again next season!

" WAYNUS " Thank you for a good report. As you hoped,the on loan Keeper was rusty,thankfully.(No
t Rotherhams Saviour!)

I was in London and deliberately waited until I got home at 10 PM., to obtain the result and brief match report. It is very useful to read your knowledgable assessments of matches and players.(Long before the T and A report)

My concerns are no doubt going to provoke controversial comment.
Some of my reasons for wanting TWO more Strikers, and TWO more defenders, are beginning to to become evident from my previous assessment, of 'Citys' push for AUTOMATIC PROMOTION.
Good goals from O'Brien and Law.
BUT, our recognised Strikers did not score AGAIN!.
Conlon had only 20 Minutes. Thorne played for 80 Minutes.(Is his back causing concern again?). Bouldings slight stature for a striker, is still off form,and missing sitters.
McLaren limped off with 30 minutes to play. I hope his injury is not long term. (Why are they not on stretchers?-Recovery of injuries starts immediatley,players should not have to limp off,further agravating the injury).
There were only 4 shots ON Target, and 4 shots OFF target from City.
So the defence is still suspect, and further injuries are occurring. The strikers are NOT scoring, and had it not been for more speculative play from O'Brien and Law. We may not have scored.
So 2 more Strikers, 2 more defenders please BCAFC-'BOARD'-is my request!?.
Finally, sorry for long EARLY? posts. Well done 'The Bradford Army'. 1637 of you travelled to Sheffield in the cold. Well played!!!.

Thanks Waynus - reports like this are invaluable for supporters like me who are unable to attend games. I tend to read the live text match reports, as I can't get the Radio broadcasts down here. I am concerned that "watching" the match in this way, for several games now, Thorne is hardly ever mentioned during the match - he just doesn't seem to be in the game at all. Has he gone to ground? What's happening to him? He certainly isn't "frightening" the opposition, as was suggested earlier in the season.

Good report Waynus, due to working i couldnt attend yesterday but listened to that idiot Tim Thornton on radio, now he does have rose tinted glasses as far city and Mccall are concerned!!

A very welcome win,however i got the impression that we were lucky to be still in the game after the 1st 10mins.

I can only comment on what i heard and it seems the defensive problems havent bee solved, with both Lee and Clarke guilty of bad defendeding, especially Lee who failed to pick up Broughton and left him with two very good goal scoring chances early on.

The central midfield seemed void of any attacking ideas, can anyone tell me if it was a coincidence that we seemed to play better once Mclaren went off?

As for Freddy's comments on the strikers, i've said it before Thorne is not 100% but if he doesnt play i cant see Conlon or Boulding filling his shoes and scoring the goals, which is why most fans want another striker in the team

That was a good report waynus, prob just a tad long...don't you have much to do when you get home on a saturday night than spending hours typing out a report from your little note book? Just wondering, How big is your note book? Just for the record ,just over 750 words (I know, must be sad counting them).Bradford boys school would be proud of an essay that long!

my mate dave loves leeds wrote:
That was a good report waynus, prob just a tad long...don't you have much to do when you get home on a saturday night than spending hours typing out a report from your little note book? Just wondering, How big is your note book? Just for the record ,just over 750 words (I know, must be sad counting them).Bradford boys school would be proud of an essay that long!

I typed it when I was sucked up by a big, green, scary alien in his pink spaceship with yellow wings and red wheels...!

No, I didn't have anything else to do on Saturday night. All the housework was done, Coco was in bed, Shaz working and the other kids were either playing on their DS or X-box. What was I supposed to do? Besides, I had people waiting on me.

You say I typed the report from my 'little note book' and then ask me 'how big my note book is'???

Finally, you typed 69 words to tell us ......NOTHING! If you are going to spend time writing, at least make it relevant. See you on Tuesday Night?

Is the "69" a codeword for Tuesday Night?

i blinking hope not, he might be a bit that way, but i certainly aren't!

my mate dave loves leeds wrote:
i blinking hope not, he might be a bit that way, but i certainly aren't!

That isn't what your wife says!