Victory in last two matches can spark Bradford City for next season

It earned them the full-time job in the process.

But, as many seasoned observers would suggest, the true test in management, more especially for a rookie duo, is coping with the first bad run on your own watch and getting out of it.

While unfortunate in its manner, City’s late midweek loss to Salford City was their fifth defeat on the spin.

As recently as early March, the club were basking in the glow of five successive wins and eyeing the play-offs. Now the flip side of the coin has transpired and the club’s season as a competitive entity is over.

Despite another setback, better performance levels at least enthused Trueman against a promotion-chasing side who triumphed thanks to a controversial stoppage-time goal from Ian Henderson which many felt was offside.

Trueman spies plenty of hope for the future, but in terms of a public relations exercise, it would be nice all around and fitting if City signed off in their last two matches with points against Scunthorpe United and Morecambe.

Trueman said: “We talk about performance levels and for us to perform this way and lose probably says where we were before.

“We were not good enough, here we were better but not good enough to get over the line.

“We talk about next season and the squad. The core group of the squad will be with us next season. In terms of what we look like, we looked better against Salford and if we can improve in certain areas and bring certain personnel into the club, we won’t be too far away next season.

“If we keep improving and believing in what we are doing and get some good work into these players in pre-season, we will be ahead of the game.

“But these next two games, we have got to win them. At least the performance levels were higher on Tuesday.

“As players and staff, we cannot look at what has happened in the past, but to the future. We cannot just think: ‘well, we had a good period (before)’, it is what is next and now that counts.”

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