By Jason McKeown

So this is what the calm after the storm feels like. After the ferocious fury of the past few weeks, soft serenity broke out here at Valley Parade, as Bradford City supporters were able to purr in quiet satisfaction over a hard-fought win that makes it seven points from the last nine.

It was all very nice. Lovely, in fact. The sun came out. Brad Halliday scored on his 100th appearance for the Bantams. The football wasn’t exactly edge of your seat stuff, but the composed professionalism displayed by the home side to keep Gillingham at arm’s length meant there wasn’t any real tension or fear. A cloud of contentment emanated over the stadium as we filed out at full time with City the victors. The storm has run out of rain and the sky is blue. For now at least.

After all that we’ve endured of late, it’s a relief just to have some tiny semblance of a feelgood factor again. We’ve been fooled too often by what proved to be misleading signs of green shoots to get carried away by this. Forgiveness for what went on before is still a long way off. And it certainly will be hard to forget. But maybe we’ve just exited rock bottom. Maybe the future can prove brighter than the recent darkness.

City players – and manager – certainly deserve appreciation for their efforts here. They’ve played much better for sure, and there’s definitely an argument to make that basically have nothing to play for created some artificial conditions. This group of players didn’t do it when it really, really mattered, and that’s a black mark against them. But still, with the pressure off, they got to remind us that they’re a decent group of people really. And that some, if not all of them, should be invited to be part of next season’s plans.

If City didn’t have much to play for, the same can’t be said of Gillingham. The visitors were an odd bunch. For large spells they operated without any great sense of urgency, as they limped to a defeat that virtually guarantees they’re staying in League Two with City next season. Famously the lowest scorers in the division, you could see why they’re averaging less than a goal a game.

Gillingham end the afternoon five points off the play offs, having played two more games than seventh-placed Crawley Town, and with just three to play themselves. The white flag is blowing in the wind. They’re basically done.

Perhaps it would have been a different story during a good first half spell that saw Sam Walker make brilliant saves to deny Oli Hawkins and Max Ehmer. In-between those two big chances, Daniel Oyegoke also cleared a Timothee Dieng effort off the line (other than that, the former Bantam Dieng was utterly anonymous). But before and after that period, the Gills were second best. Ultimately, they could not overcome City’s understated solidity.

It all meant that Halliday’s charging run inside and shot from distance, just before half time, was enough to earn the Bantams victory. Halliday’s effort was decent but looked saveable, with Jake Turner unconvincing in his dive attempt to keep it out. The visiting keeper had a point when remonstrating with his defence for failing to close Halliday down, but he clearly should have done better himself.

Halliday’s goal and match-winning status was fitting reward for another solid performance where he got up and down the pitch tirelessly, adding value in both defence and attack. It’s been a great season for the City right back, who in a few weeks’ time will no doubt be collecting plenty of trophies at the club’s end of season awards do. And although it was a little too generous that the sponsors’ awarded Halliday man of the match, his attitude and work-rate throughout was a key reason in City’s success.

That man of the match award should really have gone to Oyegoke. It was a surprise to see the on-loan Brentford man still in the starting line up here, and I think we can increasingly speculate, with confidence, that the mid-season renegotiation of terms with the Bees has included some sort of commitment from City to play Oyegoke no matter what. But back in the right sided centre half position – ahead of the benched Jon Tomkinson – Oyegoke had an excellent game. His reading of when to tackle and when to hold off opposition players is improving, and he’s very assured on the ball.

Graham Alexander is clearly a fan, and perhaps we’ll see Oyegoke back at Valley Parade next season – something that always seemed less likely in Tomkinson’s case.

With Matty Platt also putting in an excellent shift, and Ciaran Kelly improving from a slow start, the Bantams rear-guard was well on top of their game. Well done to Tyreik Wright too, who came in as left wing back and produced his best performance at Valley Parade since returning on loan. At last, he may have found a role in Alexander’s football approach.  

Going forward, City were less fluid. Alexander restored the structure to the one that did so well against Tranmere on Good Friday, with Richie Smallwood sitting in front of the back three and Jamie Walker and Bobby Pointon operating as attacking midfielders. Neither Walker or Pointon hit the heights of their Tranmere displays, but still showed glimpses of creativity and positional intelligence. Pointon does need to keep the ball better at times, but you don’t want to neuter his bravery to try things.

If there was a learning curve element to Pointon’s afternoon, it was even more the case for Calum Kavanagh, who partnered Andy Cook up front. A lot of things did not go right for Kavanagh here. He gave possession away regularly, and made several bad decisions. Encouragingly though, he kept going and his work-rate is exceptional. The investment City have put in young Kavanagh and Pointon means we need to tolerate afternoons where it doesn’t go as well, to boost their long-term development. And with Kavanagh especially, that’s what can be taken from this game.

Cook missed a very presentable chance early doors and was too quiet. But the service to him wasn’t great. Gillingham’s matching of City’s 3-5-2 meant the game was largely a war of attrition. The Bantams had their moments on top, but ultimately it was two teams failing to fully function attacking wise. The difference between the two sides was that City got the opening goal, meaning their failings in the final third were less significant than Gillingham’s.

And so, City have only their eighth home win in 22 home games. They still languish in the bottom half of League Two. And they have all but confirmed their place in this division for a sixth straight season. The reasons for those storm clouds are still there, meaning the unrest could very quickly return. But the hope has to be that the upturn in results gives the club breathing space to begin to build some stronger building blocks.

Since Stefan Rupp’s open letter, we’ve seen the appointment of David Sharpe as head of football. Sharpe was no doubt here to watch this game, fresh from an eight-hour meeting on Thursday with Alexander, Stephen Gent and Ryan Sparks. Effectively, pre-season has begun, and City have to make this extra planning time count. If there is an argument to make the club were hindered last summer because their involvement in the 2023/23 play offs delayed their planning, this time around there are no excuses to not start preparing.

It is always slightly sad to reach this point of the season, where all around the country clubs and their supporters are going through the gut-wrenching anxiety of pushing for promotion, and City in contrast have nothing to play for. But as much as Bradford City’s 2023/24 season is heading for a low key conclusion, the aspiration has to be that we can look back on this moment as one where the seeds of success were planted.

Categories: Match Reviews

Tags: 2023/24, BCAFC, Gillingham, League Two