Bradford City 3 Stockport County 2: Taylor leaves the stage clear for follow-up act to shine on Parade

ALWAYS leave them wanting more is the maxim in the entertainment industry.

Peter Taylor did just that, almost sheepishly turning to applaud the crowd as he made his way down the touchline for the final time.

The curtain had come down on his Bradford City managerial reign after a thrilling last-gasp victory over nine-man opposition which could prove crucial to the entire future of the club.

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While it had been more pantomime than opera, what do you expect for a pound?

For that is all it had cost to get into Valley Parade after joint chairman Julian Rhodes had slashed prices to rally support for what he had classed as the most important game in the club’s recent history.

The move worked a treat, an additional 5,000 supporters taking advantage of the offer and even though they might have felt short-changed at the break, they went home believing it was a pound well spent.

Defeat would have left City just three points above the relegation places but victory moved them eight points clear and left visitors County rooted to the bottom.

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There were heroes and villains on both sides – City’s Steve Williams and County’s Ryan Dobie playing both roles.

But, in the end, the ‘Oscar’ went to Gareth Evans, who came off the bench to drill home the winner in the fifth and final minute of stoppage time.

Almost 15,000 City fans roared with delight for they knew just what a Football League survival lifeline the striker had thrown them.

It also provides whoever takes over from Taylor some breathing space for the crucial 14-match run-in.

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Taylor, brought in just over a year ago, knows he has failed to deliver, hence his reason for an early departure with a sizeable amount of the support having turned against him.

Taylor’s reign began with City 16th and ends with them in 20th so what does he feel the next man in charge – Peter Jackson stepping in on a temporary basis this morning – requires to take them towards the play-offs?

“Luck on injuries – that’s all, I can assure you,” replied the former England Under-21 coach.

“If I was a millionaire I wouldn’t invest in a football club because you can’t say what’s going to happen – people get injured. We have had the most horrendous injuries this year that I’ve ever experienced anywhere and people can say that is an excuse but I don’t care. That is a fact.”

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Taylor admitted: “The decision we made on Wednesday (to announce his exit from the club ahead of the game) could have gone really wrong but it’s gone right. I was desperate for us to finish with a win and get some breathing space on the bottom two. In that respect, we are delighted with that decision.

“I spoke to the players and wished them well. I told them the majority are my players and I want them to be really professional because this is a magnificent football club and they have to do things right. The first thing we have to do is make sure we stay up and then the club has to kick on from there.

“I have told them to be very professional and they will be so whoever comes in will have a good crop of players and he might be a little bit luckier with injuries.

“I am really sad and disappointed to be leaving early. It’s a great football club and I wish them well and I hope they kick on.”

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There were just four players who kicked off Saturday’s game who had also begun in Taylor’s first game, a 2-0 defeat at Accrington Stanley.

Captain Michael Flynn, left-back Luke O’Brien and striker James Hanson were in City colours while Matt Glennon was in goal for County.

Glennon looked like making it a miserable day for his former manager as he beat away Hanson’s 34th-minute penalty after Adam Griffin had been dismissed for handling on the line.

By then, Williams had been the central character, rising above the County defence to head home a free-kick from Flynn; then being robbed in midfield, allowing Paul Turnbull to run on and slot home the equaliser before the centre-back had one close-range effort cleared off the line before striking the bar with his second attempt.

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Williams was not finished. His failure to spring the offside trap allowed Dobie to run clear and tap home after Lenny Pidgeley had dashed off his line but had failed to hold the through ball from James Wallace. As a result, 10-man County led 2-1 at the break.

Evans and Jake Speight were sent on under shoot on sight orders and the latter struck the bar with a deflected shot but Dobie’s recklessness caused County’s downfall as he elbowed Luke Oliver in the face near the dugouts and received a straight red.

Williams turned hero again in the 76th minute as he equalised from close range after Hanson and David Syers had won headers in the area. And then there was the stoppage time drama as Evans fired home after O’Brien’s shot deflected into his path.

Williams took the sponsors’ award leaving Taylor to comment: “If he got man of the match for playing like that then there is something wrong in this game. He’s got to go home and learn about defending. I’m delighted he got a couple of great goals but defensively he was awful.”

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Bradford City: Pidgeley, Hunt, Williams, Oliver (Threlfall 71), O’Brien; Adeyemi (Speight 46), Bullock (Evans 46), Syers, Ellison; Flynn; Hanson. Unused substitutes: McLaughlin, Dobie, Osborne, Worthington.

Stockport County: Glennon, Halls, O’Donnell, Brown, Goodall; Poole (Tansey 68), Wallace (Assoumani 79), Turnbull, Griffin; Paterson (Elding 79), Dobie. Unused substitutes: Lynch, Vincent, Rowe, Fisher.

Referee: T Kettle (Rutland).

HARSH HOME TRUTHS FROM CAPTAIN FLYNN

CAPTAIN Michael Flynn has warned some of his clubmates to take an honest look at themselves following the departure of manager Peter Taylor.

Flynn says joint chairmen Julian Rhodes and Mark Lawn should not be rushed into the next permanent appointment as they sift through the applicants to become the club’s ninth manager this century but says the players must respond whoever gets the job.

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Following their stoppage-time win over nine-man Stockport, Flynn said: “This season we haven’t done anything the easy way and we nearly threw it away to be honest.

“We got there in the end and the three points was more important than anything. We just did enough, luckily.”

Taylor’s midweek announcement that he would be leaving did not affect the players, claimed Flynn.

“The one thing the manager wanted was for us to stay professional. It was a massive game today and everybody knew that. We had to get the win – to think of different agendas would not have suited anybody.

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“We showed today character that shows we can stick together and pull something out.

“The position the club is in at the moment is not good enough and I’m big enough to admit that. If any player has a moan about it then they need to go and have a look in the mirror because we haven’t done what we can do consistently this year.”

Do City need a quick appointment?

“I’d rather them get the right man,” said Flynn. “The two chairmen, Mark and Julian, know what they are doing. I have every faith in those two. They love the club and if it wasn’t for those two there would be no Bradford City. They deserve a massive pat on the back and I hope they have more luck with their next appointment.

“I am absolutely gutted for Peter and I said the same about Stuart McCall (previous manager). I haven’t one bad word to say, they were absolute gentleman, were honest and I have a lot of repsect for the pair. I’m glad that Stuart is doing well at Motherwell now and I just hope that Peter Taylor can get back in football because he has a lot to offer. I think he has got ability in abundance.”

Looking to the rest of the campaign, he added: “You can’t take your foot off the gas at all. I know what we need, I have a target in my head and when we hit that I will let you know.”