Written by Jason McKeown (images by John Dewhirst)

After all that tension, fear and uncertainty, there’s only more tension, fear and uncertainty to come. Bradford City are in the play-offs. The job sealed in comfort by beating a beleaguered-looking Exeter City and condemning them to relegation.

It’s a magnificent achievement to qualify for the play-offs. To get the job done by successfully managing the anxiety and jeopardy that has soundtracked this nervy run-in. But even that pales in comparison to the rollercoaster of emotions that now awaits.

There will be plenty of time to talk about that. To chew over the prospect of a mouth-watering two-legged battle with Bolton Wanderers. For now, this moment should be enjoyed. This prize should be celebrated. A season’s worth of hard work, overachievement and remarkable character has earned this most wonderful reward.

Who predicted a play-off finish at the start of the season? The team have vastly exceeded expectations and done every City supporter proud. They end the campaign in fourth place – their highest final league position for 22 years.

We simply could not ask for more.

This game summed up why this team are so loved. With so much on the line, Graham Alexander’s charges delivered once again on a big occasion. Considering what was at stake, it was the perfect away performance: a true team effort where no one truly stood out, yet no one floundered. Antoni Sarcevic scooped the player of the match award, but any member of the starting XI could have been a worthy contender.

Not that City played well. They didn’t. But they played as well as they needed to, keeping their hosts at arm’s length and never ceding the quiet control they held over proceedings. They rarely looked flustered or troubled. And that was key to securing a first win in five games.

Exeter had to win to have any chance of staying up. They looked fired up before kick-off, but their cause was quickly undermined when news came through that Leyton Orient were 1-0 up inside two minutes. As it stood, even victory here wouldn’t save Exeter from the drop.

When you’ve won just one of your last 19 games, mentality is fragile – and that showed. Exeter wilted. The tameness of their performance reflected a team that was ready to accept its fate.

So although City were poor themselves for the first 20 minutes, there was little consequence. Mendes Gomes mis-kicked in front of goal after five minutes, and that was as good as it got for Exeter, who reached half-time without registering a single attempt.

Once City found their feet, their quality showed. Sarcevic’s return from injury was huge – absolutely huge. Firstly, it allowed City to revert to their regular 3-4-3 formation (with Sarcevic himself operating on the left and George Lapslie on the right). Secondly, the man for big games delivered once again – playing a significant role in the first goal before adding what proved to be the winner.

Sarcevic’s key involvement in City’s opener came after he won a long Sam Walker punt, easily shrugged off some pretty pathetic defending from Liam Oakes, and set up Lapslie, who played in Kayden Jackson to score for the second game in a row. It was a lovely finish from the January signing, who after a rusty return from injury is now finding his grove again. The return to 3-4-3, with two effective wide players supporting, certainly aided Jackson.

What was especially impressive about City’s opener is that it came moments after they’d been denied what looked a certain goal. Ibou Touray had floated a free kick to the back post that both Aden Baldwin and Joe Wright attacked. Wright appeared to get their first, sending a powerful header towards the bottom corner, only for Exeter keeper Jack Bycroft to produce a magnificent save. But rather than dwell, City kept the tempo going. Cue Walker to Sarcevic to Lapslie to Jackson, and the Bantams 1-0 up.

Jackson’s strike came in the midst of an afternoon with twists and turns elsewhere. The answer to who would make the play offs – and who would play each other – kept changing all afternoon.

With the score 0-0 at St James Park, news filtered through that Luton were winning at Bolton, briefly pushing the Hatters into the top six before Bolton equalised. Then Stockport took the lead at Barnsley. As it stood, City were set to face Bolton, with the first leg at Valley Parade.

After City scored, that flipped – City heading to Bolton first. Then Bolton took the lead before half-time, changing the picture again. Now City were facing Stockport instead, with Valley Parade hosting the first leg. Meanwhile, Plymouth were surprisingly 2-0 down to bottom club Northampton before recovering to 2-2 by half-time. Their game had no implications for City’s mission to finish in the play offs, but might have shaped who the Bantams would face.

All the drama around the country came with City controlling the game in Devon, without necessarily capitalising on their dominance of possession. Sarcevic and Touray had gone close at 0-0, and then after Jackson’s goal it was Jenson Metcalfe who came nearest to a second. Josh Neufville was playing well on the right, forcing his struggling marker Danny Andrew into a desperate late lunge that saw him get man instead of ball, and earning a yellow card.

It all looked so hopeless for Exeter, but then news came through Leyton Orient had been pegged back by Burton. If the Grecians could recover from their losing position and defeat the Bantams, they’d stay up. The flat home crowd found its voice again, and they forced a first corner just before the interval. But it was small crumbs of comfort. They trooped off at half time with an xG of 0.0.

Still, Exeter emerged from the break looking a bit more up for it and purposeful. A double sub, which included former City player (and former City player manager) Kevin McDonald taking to the field. The other half time arrival, Charlie Cummins, produced Exeter’s first shot of the entire game. Gomes then tested Walker from an angle after a decent move.

But their resistance was limited, and further dampened when Leyton Orient scored again. Then it was 2-2 at Brisbane Road. Suddenly, it was back on – if Exeter could find two goals. Manager Matt Taylor rolled the dice early, using all five substitutes by the 68th minute. Exeter were probably the better side during this spell, but City’s defence stood firm. Curtis Tilt, Wright and Baldwin were in uncompromising form.

Elsewhere, the play-off chaos continued. Barnsley equalised against Stockport, setting up a City-County semi-final with a first leg at Edgley Park. Then Luton equalised at Bolton, lifting City to third in the live table – and a potential tie with Stevenage. Plymouth scored, putting them into sixth ahead of Stevenage. Deep in stoppage time Stevenage had their own Sarvevic vs Fleetwood moment to go 1-0 up and deny Plymouth a top six berth. Luton also scored late on at Bolton.

All of which meant the two results City feared – wins for Stevenage and Luton – came to pass. Fortunately, they were in no mood to slip themselves. With 11 minutes remaining, Sarcevic capitalised on Jack McMillan’s weak header back to Bycroft to calmly make it 2-0. Cue wild celebrations from the sold-out City support behind the goal.

The game seemed done. But in keeping with a nervy end to the season, City invited late jeopardy. Two minutes into injury time, Exeter won a corner after Walker denied Jayden Wareham. Bycroft – who recently produced that rarest of things, a goalkeeper scoring from a corner – went up to cause a distraction. It worked. City didn’t pick up sub Josh Magennus, who found the back of the net for 2-1. Poor defending, and not the best goalkeeping.

It was way too little, way too late for Exeter. And City saw out a victory that extends their season by at least two more matches. They go to Bolton on Saturday night next week, before a Thursday evening home encounter with the Trotters. Expect two huge atmospheres, and a battle that looks too close to call.

The work starts now. But first, this is a time to celebrate.

This is City’s best-ever finish as a newly promoted club, and another seismic achievement for Alexander. The impact he has made since taking charge is colossal. The Bantams were stuck in a League Two doom loop that had defeated so many before him. Confidence in owner Stefan Rupp, CEO Ryan Sparks, and head of recruitment Stephen Gent was fading. The gloom had set in.

Rupp, Sparks, Gent and the later appointed David Sharpe deserve immense credit for the role they’ve played in revitalising this football club. But none of it happens without Alexander’s calm, statesman-like football leadership. He fits the club so neatly. He embraces the challenges that come with a large but expectant fanbase. He gets it. And he knows how to drive it forward.

City were languishing 16th in League Two when he took over. In two-and-a-half years, he has lifted them 36 places.

The latest part of that rise is the product of one of the most enjoyable league campaigns in years. This season has arguably been even more fun than last year’s promotion, given the pressure that came then from still mired in League Two. We came into this division not knowing how City would fare, and have been treated to so many rewarding days.

The opening day win over Wycombe. Early season promise in beating Luton, Stockport, and Wimbledon. The amazing week where City smashed local rivals Huddersfield before hammering Cardiff in their own backyard. The thrilling 2-2 with Barnsley. The encouraging 0-0 at Bolton. Winter wins over Exeter, Reading, Wigan, Port Vale and Blackpool. Recovering from a chastening week of losing to Huddersfield and Lincoln by edging past Doncaster. The Peterborough annihilation. Beating Stockport – again. The 10-men drama over Leyton Orient. Succeeding on the road at Port Vale and Wycombe. And even the recent flurry of draws with Barnsley, Plymouth and Bolton that were so absorbing and atmospheric.

We can go into the play-offs with the exact same mindset that we went into this incredible season: not knowing what to expect, and enjoying whatever comes.

Maybe this is the limit, and Bolton will prove too strong. Or maybe City are just three games away from the Championship.

Strap in. Feel excited. Embrace the moment.

And get ready – for more tension, fear and uncertainty.

Categories: Match Reviews

Tags: 2025/26, BCAFC, Exeter City, League One