2005/2006 Season Preview - BRADFORD

Bradford: Yorkshire Stadium: Valley Parade. 25,136. All Seated. Nickname: The Bantams Hate: Leeds, Huddersfield Town. Last Meeting: 30th Mar 1996 LD2 Bradford City A L 1-5 Bradford. The final resting place of Morph. Younger readers may not remember animated plasticine hero Morph and his cheeky foe Chaz, but their escapades during Tony Hart's famous children's TV art show were legendary (at least they seemed so at the time). Morph and Chaz are laid to rest at The National Museum of Photography and Television in Bradford. Pride of place in my photo collection is a picture of myself next to Morph's display. What's this got to do with football? Nothing. One of the most memorable Swansea City matches of the last 15 years is the outrageous game between the two sides played in 1991 at Valley Parade that ended 4-6 to the Swans. The game set a new record (that still stands) for the biggest away win for the Swans in the league. The Bantams must have known is was going to be a bad day when it was announced that none other than Leighton James was going to be in temporary charge of the team that day. The endless ins and outs of the game have been well documented with Swansea stealing the headlines after an extraordinary victory, including a first league hat-trick for John Williams, (insert your own 'first-class delivery/former postman' pun here) Bradford achieved the seemingly impossible feat of survival in their first season in the Premiership in 1999/2000 under the stewardship of current Wigan boss Paul Jewell. A remarkable victory over Liverpool in the last game of the season kept them up and also meant Liverpool missed out on a Champions League place. They were unable to build on the surprise success of staying up, and made the mistake of signing volatile and expensive individuals such as Carbone and Collymore. They were often entertaining, but failed to gel into the team ethic that worked miracles the year before. Bradford suffered more than most after their relegation from the Premiership in 2001. The combined cost of the contracts of players and the redevelopment of Valley Parade left the club on the brink of closure. But, as so often happens in such situations, a way out is found, and a rescue package was put together. Unable to maintain a Division 1 (Championship) place whilst understandably concentrating their attention and resources elsewhere, the club now find themselves back in the third tier of English football seeking to rebuild what's left of the club. Against the backdrop of the club's near extinction, last season's 11th place finish can be regarded as some kind of success. Veteran Striker Dean Windass hit 28 goals and the club made occasional pushed towards the play-offs but lacked the consistency needed. Now that the future of the club is secure however, fans will be expecting a bit more upward momentum this term. As we know too well in Swansea, there is only so long a claim of 'at least we have a club' will placate the fans. Fans don't just want a team just to exist - they want success. During the close season, Manager Colin Todd has been a busy trying to put together a squad that can compete at this level. So far he's managed to persuade physio's nightmare and former Bantam Danny Cadamarteri to re-sign for the club after leaving Sheffield United. Jamaican international defender Damion Stewart has also signed on a one-year deal, as well as Dutchman Bobby Petta on a two-year deal. Petta you may remember had a brief and largely unsuccessful period with League 2 Darlington last season. The club vice-chairman has played down their chances of success this season, stating that promotion is not the main goal. Despite these cautious words, with their financial troubles easing, I'm sure the fans will be looking towards the play-offs from day one, but they ain't going to make it. They will finish: 10th

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