Parkinson planning for bright City future

The two clubs were in such a poor run of form that there was a very real chance their respective fights to stay in the Football League would go all the way through to the end of the season, which is why the meeting at Valley Parade seemed destined to be such a pivotal match.

Since then, however, Bradford have dragged themselves out of trouble courtesy of two wins from their last three games and now only a truly bizarre set of results can relegate the Yorkshire club.

It means the City board and supporters can rest easy going into the final three games of the season, even if, as manager Phil Parkinson has made clear, the players cannot.

He said: “It has been a good week for us. The lads, as you would imagine, have been in good spirits since our win at Northampton Town.

“It was a big result but that does not mean anyone can start to ease off.

“We want to finish strongly. We told the players before Northampton that all that mattered was how we did, no one else. That still applies now. We want to finish as high up the table as possible.”

Unlike Bradford, Macclesfield are still deep in relegation trouble due to not having won in 20 attempts since the turn of the year.

The Silkmen beat Bradford at Moss Rose in late October but have won just once – on New Year’s Eve against Port Vale – since then and sit three points adrift of safety, meaning Brian Horton’s side need to stop the rot this afternoon.

Parkinson, meanwhile, has no such concerns with his mind already having turned to what changes need making ahead of next season.

He said: “The win gives us breathing space to plan for next season. We want to give this club a great chance of improving next year.

“We have a decent base to build on and there are a few players who have emerged this season. Lads like Nahki Wells and a few others.

“The key now is adding further quality to the decent players we already have. It will be great to get our own squad in place.

“At times, we have had to over rely on loan players a lot this season to fill holes. But now we have a chance to build our own squad and create our own spirit within the club.

“That is what helps a team get through nine months, a strong spirit.”

With safety now all but assured, Parkinson is already formulating his summer recruitment plans.

He said: “For various reasons, there has been a lot of chopping and changing. That is inevitable because I brought players in, so did Peter Jackson and, before that, so did Peter Taylor.

“It needs some stability. I knew when I arrived that it would not be easy. Nor will it be next season. But it is also a great challenge and one we can’t wait to tackle head on.

“The aim this season was to keep us in the Football League. Next time, we have to push on.”