When the Bluebirds play the Bantams tomorrow afternoon, they hope to accomplish a league double over Bradford City for the second straight year.
The Bluebirds were defeated 5-3 by Salford City during their most recent game. Despite spending a considerable amount of time on the sidelines, Tyrell Warren got his first start in more than four months and even scored a goal, so there was some positive to take away from the game.
After scoring twice in the match, including a spectacular curling shot into the far corner from 20 yards out to bring Barrow back to par before halftime, Cole Stockton also found himself on the scoresheet once again. That indicates that since joining the Bluebirds, he has already scored four goals in five starts.
Junior Tiensia has been participating in some training over the past few weeks as he accelerates his recuperation from injury.
Jamie Proctor is still serving a four-match suspension, therefore he won’t be available for tomorrow’s game.
Under the direction of former Scunthorpe United manager Graham Alexander, Saturday’s opponents Bradford City are presently in 13th place in the Sky Bet League Two standings.
Bradford is now under the leadership of its second manager of the year, Alexander, who took over in November 2023. In that time, he has overseen 21 games, winning 11, drawing five, and losing five. Despite averaging 1.8 points per game, he has kept up a 52.4% victory percentage.
They have gained ten points from their last five league games, winning three and drawing one. To find out when they last lost, you’ll have to go back to January 27 at The County Ground, when they were defeated 2-0 by Swindon Town.
Andy Cook, his striker and leading scorer, is the target of a star’s play. He first joined The Bantams on loan, and since then, he has made 125 appearances and scored 61 goals. Cook has contributed significantly to the Yorkshire team thus far this season, making 30 league appearances and scoring 13 goals.
Head-to-Head
Since our return to the EFL, Barrow has faced Bradford seven times in total. The Bluebirds have won four of those encounters, while The Bantams have won twice, with just one match ending in a tie.
The two teams’ last meeting at Holker Street took place in August 2022. On that day, the Cumbrian team won spectacularly, with goals from Ben Whitfield, Josh Kay, and Josh Gordan giving us all three points.
This season, the two teams had already met at Valley Parade in November, when Graham Alexander’s debut game in command of the Bantams resulted in a 1-2 loss to the Bluebirds. The Cumbrians moved back up to Holker Street with all three points thanks to goals from Dom Telford and George Ray. George Ray scored the winning goal, which was his first for the team. Since then, he has scored two more.
