Jonathan Tomkinson, a former Bradford City player who was notoriously unable to purchase any playing time, is enjoying a fantastic season as a member of the Bantams defence.
The young American, who is on loan from Norwich City, is one of the main winners of City’s move to a back three starting in mid-November. He is still one of League Two’s most attractive centre halves.
He contributed to the Bantams’ 3-0 victory over Accrington Stanley on Saturday, putting Graham Alexander’s team just five points out of the play-off spots with a game remaining against many of the teams in and around them.
And Tomkinson, who displayed his entire skill set at the Wham Stadium this past weekend, has been a crucial player in this late push for the coveted top seven.
Tyreik Wright scored City’s first goal thanks to his precise long pass early in the game. He was an absolute beast in defence the entire afternoon, frequently making unexpected appearances to thwart any attacking threat the hosts posed.
After the game, Alexander told the T&A that Tomkinson “has massive potential,” indicating that he is a player at his disposal.
He has been a regular member of our team for a few months now, but before then, neither he nor Ciaran Kelly had played much.
However, we’ve just seen their respective qualities—they’re both rivals and incredibly fast and mobile.
Although JT is still learning the game, he is very receptive to learning more about it.
“He accepts whatever we put in front of him or discuss with him.
“And he is the best athletic center-back there is.”
Due to a concussion he sustained in the 1-1 draw with Doncaster a few days earlier, Sam Stubbs was sidelined on Saturday, leaving Tomkinson, Kelly, and Liam Ridehalgh in the back three.
The 32-year-old impressed Alexander with his bravery and versatility during his stellar performance at Accrington.
“I thought he was excellent, especially given he broke his finger in training 10 days ago,” the City manager stated.
“His injury was supposed to keep him out of action for four weeks, so he had another cast put on because he really wanted to play. His hand was in plaster.
“I thought he was excellent today, in a great position for him on the left side of a back three. He’s ready to play.”
“I think it fits his attribute, and having Lewis Richards beside him at left wing-back was great too, as he’s been out for a little while with an injury.”
The City team performed admirably on Saturday, but did they gain anything from Accrington’s turbulent week?
The day after a crushing 4-0 loss at Wrexham, popular long-serving manager John Coleman was fired by Stanley chairman Andy Holt via WhatsApp last Sunday.
The Accrington supporters were not happy with that decision or the way it was implemented, and they expressed their opinions on Saturday.
In addition, the players will need to adjust to the strange prospect of playing at Stanley without Coleman, who had led the Lancashire team since 1999 aside from a two-year stint from 2012 to 2014.
However, Alexander remarked: “I believe that this was our fourth game of the season against a team that had a new manager, and we hadn’t won any of the previous three.”
“The players and supporters will sometimes react massively to that kind of unrest.
“Every game at this level is extremely competitive and challenging; it only appears easy if you play well, score goals, maintain a clean sheet, and other such feats.
“We didn’t play easy today; the outcome may suggest otherwise, but we wouldn’t have won here if we had played like we did against Doncaster in the middle of the week.”
