After our stunning win at Valley Parade last Saturday against league rivals and third placed Walsall who we panned 4-0 thanks in part to James Hanson’s first career hat trick, the Bantams now turn their attention towards another long away day trip, this time visiting the far south of England, the county of Essex and League One midtable outfit Southend United.
This Saturday sees us travel south to midtable side Southend United in search of the win we need to secure our League One play-off place come the final day of the season, Sunday 8th of May. A point in our match at Roots Hall on Saturday could also be enough for City to secure a top six finish if either or both Gillingham and Barnsley fail to win their respective fixtures this weekend as City currently sit five points ahead of the Gills in seventh with just two league games remaining.
It still seems a bit strange to be talking about City and their possible and now likely involvement in the League One play-off campaign this term considering some of the low points the club has faced on the pitch this season. Most Bantams fans will agree with the opinion that the 2-1 home loss to Colchester in early March both represented our worst result and our worst performance of this season’s campaign however that result also seemed to kick-start our season in the strangest of ways. Since that result against Colchester the Bantams have won seven of the eleven matches we have played and have taken three points off of some of the better teams in the league with Burton, Walsall and Millwall falling victim to a rejuvenated Bradford side in recent weeks. With a squad full of confidence and depth as it currently stands, promotion for City via the play-offs is a real distinct possibility this season.
As I mentioned recently on a piece I contributed to on Width Of A Post, I feel our greatest problem in a potential play-off situation would be a lack of home advantage in the second leg of the semi-finals stage if we manage a top six finish. With Walsall sitting in third and Millwall above us as it stands we could be potentially facing an away trip in the vital second leg of the play-off semi-finals. I have faith that whoever we come up against we can beat however home advantage plays a crucial role in these massive matches and a lack of that in the second leg would be a real negative for the Bantams.
As for Southend they have had a great season considering the Shrimpers were only promoted from League Two via their successful play-off campaign last season. Currently sitting in 13th place the Essex side have performed well this term and have never once had to look over their shoulders towards the relegation places. Southend are as ‘midtable’ as it gets with 16 wins and 17 loses this campaign but are currently without a win in their last five attempts, suffering four loses during their most recent streak without a victory.
Despite this however Phil Brown’s men are still dangerous and with a plethora of experienced strikers amongst their ranks in Noel Hunt, Tyrone Barnett and David Mooney, Southend are capable of getting past any defence on their day. A name all Bradford fans will remember is that of Will Atkinsons who now plies his trade for Southend United. The winger is one of the clubs former history makers as he featured in all seven matches of our famous League Cup campaign of 2013 as well as making a total of 54 appearances during two spells with the Bantams.
Back in mid-February we met with Southend on a cold Tuesday night at Valley Parade where we dominated the match. Running out eventual 2-0 winners against the Essex side that night courtesy of a fantastic free kick from Tony McMahon and a header from James Hanson, City limited their opposition to few chances. It was the sort of domination the Bantams have been inflicting on teams over the last few weeks as we had 14 attempts at goal compared to the Shrimpers 2 that night.
On Saturday at Roots Hall we should finish the day with our guaranteed play-off position as at the moment we possess a much stronger squad than opposition Southend United currently do. If form was to go by theirs only one winner in this match. Whilst the Shrimpers have picked up just eight points from their previous ten league matches, the Bantams currently sit top of the League One form table taking 22 points from the last 30 on offer as well as conceding only 4 goals in their last 900+ minutes of action.