Bradford C 0 Chesterfield 1: Gloom deepens over Valley Parade

Bradford City’s home game against fellow strugglers Stockport on Saturday assumes even greater importance after leaders Chesterfield kept the clouds of gloom hanging over Valley Parade.

By The Newsroom

Published 23rd Feb 2011, 10:07 BST

City went into the game with just one win from eight matches and the Spireites took a 16th-minute lead when on-loan Kieran Djilali split the Bradford defence with a long pass allowing Deane Smalley to fire past Lenny Pidgeley.

Jake Speight replaced Scott Dobie in the Bantams’ attack at the start of the second half but it was not until the 58th minute that City threatened visiting goalkeeper Tommy Lee with Gareth Evans’s powerful shot. Speight and Tom Adeyemi also went close but the equaliser wouldn’t come.

Bradford City: Pidgeley; Hunt, Williams, Oliver, O’Brien; Flynn, Bullock (Osborne 81), Adeyemi, Ellison; Evans (Hanson 63), Dobie (Speight 46). Unused substitutes: McLaughlin, Duff, Worthington, Threlfall.

Chesterfield: Lee; Talbot, Holden, Breckin, Robertson; Smalley, Niven, Morris, Djilali (Whitaker 87); Davies, Boden (Lester 78). Unused substitutes: Redmond, Lowry, Griffiths, Bowery, Vidal.

Referee: K Evans (Manchester).

Chesterfield