Mind over matter: Bradford City boss Graham Alexander has his say on Valley Parade pitch debate

After Tuesday’s shock home reverse to lowly Forest Green, City return to action at BD8 on Saturday when they host League Two leaders Mansfield Town.

It is the second instalment of a triple header on home soil, with the Bantams due to host Notts County on Tuesday evening.

The much-publicised state of the surface at Valley Parade has been the source of much conjecture this winter, with some games called off and others being the subject of pitch inspections due to its weather-ravaged condition.

While it is undeniably heavy going for his players, Alexander is urging them to crack on and not let it affect them psychologically.

Alexander, whose side still retain an outside chance of play-off participation, albeit a slender one, commented: “It’s just another challenge, that’s the thing.

"We talk about mindset as you don’t know what is going to be thrown at you. You go to a game and it’s called off and you go to another game and it’s called off. So where’s your mindset?

"Are you still doing the right things and are you still being professional and preparing yourself for the game?

"You can look at the pitch and use it as an excuse or you can go ‘actually I am just going to make the best of it.’ It’s how you reframe everything that goes on in your life.

"I just don’t want us to be a group of people who look for excuses without taking accountability and responsibility for what we can do better.

"We can’t control the pitch, so just ignore it and crack on with how we want to play.

"There’s loads of circumstances why it’s done that (pitch condition) and it’s no-one’s particular fault, so let’s just forget about it and play football.

"I’m sure all our players, including myself, had games where they played on absolute cabbage patches as kids and played there for hours on end, enjoying our football.

"So let’s look at it that way rather than the negative side.”

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