By Jason McKeown

They look like they’re ready for this. Pre-season is habitually a time of skewed outlooks and misleading expectations, but here there was a level of purpose, intent and organisation that suggests Bradford City are as prepared as they can be for the unknowns of life back in League One.

They won and won well against Championship Middlesbrough, with the Teesiders rocking up with a strong squad that will have left a healthy away following feeling unsettled about their team’s poor showing. City were ultimately sharper across the pitch, scoring at the end of each half and only sporadically coming under serious pressure from their higher league opponents.

And who knows, this might all mean nothing very quickly. Whatever happens in the opening league game against Wycombe Saturday week will consign this evening to forgotten history. The smallest of footnotes to whatever is coming next. But we’ve sat through enough years of patchy pre-season friendlies to recognise the difference between a squad that’s undercooked and one that’s primed. And this squad look like they’re itching to get going.

All of which led to display brimming with good habits and high standards. City were largely organised. Fuelled with purpose. There was positive intent and a desire to win that made for a dress rehearsal full of good signs.

Like any rehearsal though there was the odd rough edge evident that’s in need of tidying up. With Tommy Leigh starting this game ahead of Alex Pattison, it seemed the January arrival’s recent media talk that he wants to play as a box to box midfielder rather than a forward had not gone unnoticed by his manager Graham Alexander.

Only for 20 minutes, there was a hole in City’s midfield that left Max Power outgunned and saw Middlesbrough players pass their way through the Bantams at will. Where was Leigh to help Power? He was higher up the pitch. Whether it was an Alexander trial or the player failing to follow the gameplan, City seemed more 3-1-3-3 than their usual 3-4-3. Early doors, it seemed a matter of when, not if, Boro would score.

Eventually Leigh dropped back. Again, we don’t know if it was a tactical experiment abandoned or Alexander telling Leigh that he was supposed to be playing deeper, but as soon as the 3-4-3 was restored, City got better. They got a grip of the game and never looked back.

That led to Antoni Sarcevic scoring from the spot just before the break after Joe Wright was tugged back in the box. And after a half time swap that saw Pattison brought on for Leigh (which is perhaps a further sign the former Accrington man had squandered his opportunity to impress), City became even more solid and tough to break down.

So we saw a second half of plenty of Middlesbrough possession with little attacking impact. And late on City created opportunities on the counter attack, with Will Swan finishing smartly to make it 2-0 with the last kick of the game.

It was all lovely, warm and nice really. Six of the starting XI were new signings and they all impressed in their own ways. Wright looks very strong at the back, with his decision-making and intelligence standing out. Josh Neufville is exciting to watch, rampaging up and down the pitch and catching the eye with his crossing. On the opposite side Ibou Touray was less attack-minded but full of solidity. Curtis Tilt stood up to the challenge well and showed a spiky determination.

With Max Power ably sitting in front of the back three and improving when Leigh/Pattison were supporting him, and Steven Humphrys showing flashes of skill, there was much to like. Fellow new signings Matt Pennington and Swan came on and also made healthy first impressions. A second half through ball Swan produced for Pattison to run onto and almost score was arguably the highlight of the night.

The new arrivals slotted in well alongside the familiar faces of Sam Walker, Neill Byrne, Bobby Pointon, Sarcevic and later Brad Halliday, Aden Baldwin, Calum Kavanagh and George Lapslie. Jack Hunt continues to be on trial and whilst it’s dubious if we really need another wing back, he did very well and is clearly offering Alexander food for thought.

The squad looks well stocked apart from one key area – cover for Power. When the City skipper for the night went off, Baldwin ended up playing defensive midfield – which is definitely not a sentence I want to be writing when the season gets going for real. The news Everton’s Jenson Metcalfe is signing on loan is a welcome boost here. And with the young defensive midfielder in the building, looking to build on a promising season at Chesterfield last season, City are just about good to go.

Good to go with the new season looming large. One more friendly to go at Oldham, then the new dawn truly begins. Pre-season can count for little but it obviously still counts for something. And though this evening will quickly be overshadowed, we might ultimately look back on a successful season and reflect how the seeds were sown on nights as promising as this.

Categories: Match Reviews

Tags: 2025/26, BCAFC, Middlesbrough