Exeter City 4 Bradford City 1: ‘We can’t let our season peter out,’ says Parkinson

Bradford City manager Phil Parkinson has called on his players to finish the season on a high despite watching their hopes of reaching the play offs suffer a further blow at Exeter.

The Bantams, two-down at half- time, looked about to give their top-seven bid a boost when they pulled one back with 11 minutes remaining.

But a late double gave the home side the spoils and left Bradford 10 points adrift with just nine games to play.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Whatever happens we have to make sure we finish the season in good spirits,” said Parkinson. “After the season we have had we can’t just let it peter out to nothing.

“I need to make sure I pick a team of players who understand that and are going to really have a go for us because I can’t let the season drift into obscurity.”

Craig Woodman’s corner hit the post and went in off Matt Duke’s back as Exeter went ahead after 11 minutes and Lawson D’Ath made it 2-0 from Arron Davies’s cross on the stroke of half-time.

Bradford improved after the break and halved the deficit when substitute Kyel Reid curled a 79th-minute corner into the net.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But Scot Bennett blasted home from 20 yards five minutes later and John O’Flynn tapped in the fourth soon after.

“I thought in the first half, we were second best,” said Parkinson. “In the second half, we played well and got the goal back but to concede the third so quickly was a real blow.

“It is not good enough to play well for 45 minutes.”

Bradford must now pick themselves up for tomorrow’s home game against Wycombe Wanderers.

Exeter City: Krysiak; Amankwaah, Woodman, Baldwin, Coles; Bennett, Davies, D’Ath (Keohane 63), Molesley, Gosling (Tully 80); O’Flynn. Unused substitutes: Evans, Moore-Taylor, Dawson, Cureton, Bauza.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Bradford City: Duke; Darby, McHugh, Davies, Nelson (Wells 83); Atkinson, Jones, Doyle (Hines 46); Connell, Thompson (Reid 46), Hanson. Unused substitutes: McLaughlin, Meredith, McArdle, Ravenhill.

Referee: G Salisbury.

Man of the match: Scot Bennett.

Related topics: