Bradford City manager Stuart McCall disappointed by "cruel" loss against Cheltenham Town

The Bantams were beaten 2-1 by League Two's second-placed side after Clayton Donaldson's first-half header was cancelled out by goals from Alfie May and Chris Clements either side of the interval.

It was a fourth-straight defeat for the Bantams and their sixth match without a win but McCall was proud of the effort from his players.

"We got every last bit of effort from them tonight," said McCall.

"We have had to come up with a system to be a little bit more solid and get the biggest team we can on the park because we knew corners, free-kicks and long throws could hurt us.

"I thought it was a cruel result tonight. I thought it was tough on them."

Bradford enjoyed the better of the game in the first 45 minutes but May's equaliser just before the break proved a "sickener" for McCall.

Cheltenham became more composed in the second half but City had their chances, including one for Bryce Hosannah which trickled agonisingly wide on the hour.

The Bantams manager changed to a 4-3-3 formation prior to kick off to try and limit Cheltenham and he was proud of the way his players adapted.

He added: "We scored a good goal and limited them. They are a good side, who are on a good run and they probably should have gone up last season.

"They have got a regular team and a regular way of playing and I am proud of our lads tonight.

"To play in a shape we have not played before, they took it on really well. For effort and commitment, the players were excellent."

Bradford City return to action on Saturday as they host Carlisle United at The Utilita Energy Stadium.

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