Even the most ardent defenders of everything Bradford City AFC will agree that the season has not gone too well so far. The recent 2-0 home defeat to Rochdale, who, with all due respect, aren’t exactly Barcelona, meant that only Plymouth Argyle separate the Bantams from the bottom.

The fans have been, as ever, loyal, with over 15,000 at Valley Parade to witness Rochdale put Bradford to the sword with two late penalties. While Bradford were dogged, and you couldn’t exactly fault the side for effort, Rochdale arguably deserved the win, even if it did look like David Hopkins men would take a point.

Indeed, anyone checking out the Rochdale match, and there are lots of ways to check out live sports streaming these days even it you are not able to make it to the stadium and the games are not on TV, will know that Bradford should not be faulted for effort.

However, the numbers speak for themselves and they are not good. A selection of stats of the season so far are presented below. Overall, they suggest one main thing – we lack true quality.

The League Table

As most fans are painfully aware, Bradford sit bottom on 10 points from 15 games. The defeat against Gillingham was Bradford’s ninth in the last 11 games. The good news is that we have only played Wimbledon (a one-nil victory) and Bristol Rovers (a 0-0 draw) from the bottom six sides. The bad news is that we have yet to play the top two teams in League One, Portsmouth and Peterborough.

The Teams Around Bradford

Plymouth sit 22nd on 13 points and Wimbledon are still on 11 points (thankfully!), headed by Shrewsbury and Gillingham now on 15 points after the latters 4-0 demolition of the Bantams on Saturday. This result as as well as Bristol Rovers and Oxford gaining points makes the table look a whole lot worse for City as we get in to the Winter months.

What the Bookies Say

Bookmakers don’t always get it right, so take the following with a pinch of salt perhaps: Bradford are odds-on with several bookmakers to be relegated, with the shortest odds coming from Sky Bet at 8/13. Bet365 consider Bradford at even money. Bet Victor has priced Bradford at 7/2 to finish bottom, with Plymouth the favourites at 5/4. If you fancy a miracle, 188Bet have priced it at 2500/1 that Bradford win League One. If you believe in minor miracles only, BetVictor have put it at 100/1 for a Top 6 finish.

Goal Problems

One of Bradford’s biggest problems so far has been scoring, with a haul of 10 goals making an average of 0.71 per game (the second lowest in the league after Bristol Rovers). However, Valley Parade has been worse, with just three goals scored at home all season (0.43 per game) – that’s worrying. Jack Payne can’t do it all himself.

The Bright Side

Every single point that Bradford have gained in the league this season (three wins and one draw) has come with a clean sheet. That shows Hopkin at least has the players working with some modicum of game management. Moreover, 50% of all defeats have been by one goal, meaning the team can remain competitive over 90 mins, and Bradford have yet to be beaten by more than two goals, so they are not the whipping boys by any means.

Is that a case of clutching at straws? Perhaps, but there is a long way to go in the season. Consider this final stat: Last season at exactly the same stage of 14 games played, Plymouth had amassed seven points and were, like Bradford now, backed by the bookies and fans to be relegated. They finished 7th. Anything can happen right?

Written by Jake Womersley (a very young writer who wanted to pen something down for us!)