Macclesfield Town 1 Bradford City 0: Away misery goes on as penalty unhinges City

City continue to hover just above the drop zone after another performance which lacked a cutting edge up front.

Clear-cut chances were at a premium during a largely incident-free first half, but the hosts bossed the early proceedings as recalled ex-Sheffield Wednesday winger-man Matt Hamshaw went close when his drive was deflected over after nine minutes.

The woodwork then saved the Bantams after a quarter-of-an-hour when Scott Boden’s shot cannoned back off a post.

It was a lucky escape for the visitors, and they seemed to take heart from it as they began to dictate the tempo and, just past the half-hour mark, Craig Fagan took a touch before guiding a well-struck shot inches over the top.

At the beginning of the second period the Bantams pressed and Marcel Seip and Michael Flynn both went close to breaking the deadlock, but they soon ran out of steam and it was to be Macclesfield who grabbed the crucial opening goal from the penalty spot after 66 minutes.

Ross Draper was sent tumbling under Luke Oliver’s challenge and the referee pointed straight to the spot.

Lewis Chalmers stepped up and convincingly beat Matt Duke, and the Bantams could not claw their way back.

Macclesfield Town: Veiga; Tremarco, Brown, Hewitt, Brisley; Kay (Daniel 61), Chalmers, Draper, Hamshaw (Wedgbury 76); Boden (Mukendi 76), Diagne. Unused substitutes: Bateson, Grant.

Bradford City: Duke; Threlfall (O’Brien 50), Oliver, Moore, Seip; Flynn, Jones (Devitt 79), Reed (Bryan 69), Reid; Hanson, Fagan. Unused substitutes: McLaughlin, Williams.

Referee: R Lewis (Shropshire)