3.00 Saturday 23/03/2019
A routine fixture on paper against a side firmly bottom of the league, that will likely prove much more difficult than first apparent, as Blackpool travel to Bradford. Blackpool, who have struggled against lowly teams this season, are beginning to lose touch with the playoffs and positive results are imperative from here on in. Not only this, but Gary Bowyer faces Blackpool for the first time since his abrupt departure, a factor that could play a huge role in Saturday's proceedings.
Injuries and Suspensions:
Sean Skannell is out for Bradford.
Former Seasider Kelvin Mellor is also injured.
Marc Bola could return for Blackpool, along with Callum Guy.
Ryan, Clayton, Tilt and Turton are all likely to be missing.
The History:
Bradford City, or the Bantams, were founded in 1903 and have recently appointed former Blackpool manager Gary Bowyer as manager. They have had some real instability in recent times, having 6 managers since the start of 2018, including caretakers. Overall though, their recent history has been reasonably successful, making it to the First Division in 1999 and the League Cup final in 2013. Bradford also won the FA Cup in 1911, defeating Newcastle in the replay of the Final at Old Trafford.
Blackpool will visit the 25,136 capacity Valley Parade, a stadium that yielded no points on the opening day last season, when they visited with Gary Bowyer in the opposite dugout to now. Bradford face a mighty task to remain in the division this season and, having built up such infrastructure since promotion in the 2012/13 season, it seems a mighty shame for the Bantams to take such a step backwards.
The Manager:
The Manchester born 47 year old spent two years at Blackpool, in that time achieving promotion from League 2 and then stabilising the ship and leading Pool to a top half finish last term. He did all this within a limited budget and under much scrutiny and no doubt it will be similar at Bradford. He brought in the likes of Kyle Vassell, Jay Spearing and Kelvin Mellor, with the latter joining back up with Bowyer at Bradford. His 115 matches and 796 days by the seaside were a real success, winning 45 matches out of the 115 and having a points average of 1.47. His record is the best since Ian Holloway and that, having had next to no support, is something really quite brilliant. He replaced David Hopkin as Bradford manager on the 4th of March and since has one win and two losses.
The Players:
Eoin Doyle - The pacy striker has bagged 10 goals to far this season in 39 games, a return that has failed to truly propel Bradford forward. Having joined for an undisclosed fee in the summer from Preston, he has been virtually every present and at 31 years of age he has certainly brought experience. He has played for 9 different clubs during his career and 91 times at League One level. Doyle is certainly a handful, but should be containable on Saturday.
David Ball - A name that some may remember from his time at Fleetwood, Ball has played 41 times this season, but has managed just 6 goals. Ball, who has played over 200 times in League One, certainly has the ability to change games, but it just has not happened this year. The 29 year old may have the capability of almost anything, but also drifts in and out of matches and is heavily reliant on confidence.
Jack Payne - The midfielder, who is currently on loan from Huddersfield, has been one of the bright lights in a largely disappointing season. He has played 43 times for the Bantams, scoring 9 times and assisting 7 times, in the most recent of a string of loan spells. He has played 113 times at this level and will be pulling the strings for Bradford on Saturday.
Stats:
6 points from safety and firmly at the bottom of the division, Bradford are teetering on the edge of the drop this season. It is a classic combination of failure to score goals and a failure to keep the other end shut that has resulted in their current league position. This translates to just 1.11 goals scored per game on average and an excessive 1.66 conceded. Before the employment of Bowyer they were winless in 5 and 7 points from safety and although Bowyer may have induced a victory over playoff candidates Peterborough, he has since lost his next two successive matches. Bradford are slipping away, but Blackpool, who are far from the desired fine vein of form themselves, need a victory equally as much.
Last Meeting:
Interviews:
Prediction: 0-0
Bowyer knows this Blackpool squad almost entirely and it can not be forgotten that he largely assembled it. For a successful manager like Bowyer, this is a huge advantage and I really think he will get some sort of result. The match will be tight and contested heavily, but unlike the reverse fixture, I think it will be a match of few goals.
UTP