Bradford City's Vadaine Oliver trying to 'lock in' to formation which plays to his strengths

Having largely gone with 4-2-3-1 this season, the Bantams switched to a midfield diamond in recent matches. That has meant three consecutive starts for Oliver, and three games on the bench for 16-goal top-scorer Andy Cook.

Bradford won the first two, Oliver scoring twice against Salford City, but it remains to be seen if Tuesday's loss to Rochdale, or being away on Saturday – at Wimbledon – means more change.

“It feels great, it’s been a long time coming," says the 31-year-old, who has doubled his League Two starts for the club since Christmas. “It’s tough, especially when you’re not used to it, but the team were doing well and Cooky has been phenomenal.

“When you do get that opportunity, you’ve got to grasp it.

“I’ve been in the game a while so it wasn’t butterflies (against Harrogate Town) but I knew it was time to lock in, do my job and show what I am capable of.”

Of the new shape, he said: “Systems work for certain players and not for others. This works for me being more of a focal point, getting the ball into me earlier and then working off crosses. That’s what I’ve done all my career."

Initially, one of Oliver’s goals against Salford was marked down as an own goal.

“I asked the ref and he said it came off the defender," he recalls. "I was like, ‘Ref, what you doing?’ I lost my head – he was robbing me of goals! But it got rectified. I went straight to the analyst saying that was definitely my goal."

City have no fresh injuries from Tuesday but on-loan winger Scott Banks is still not ready to return.