2 weeks Ago
IT WAS the kind of game that takes years off your life, 100 or so minutes that had it all. But when referee Thomas Kirk blew his whistle for full-time at Swindon yesterday, there was nothing for City to celebrate. Despite Bantams striker Calum Kavanagh scoring three goals, the visitors also put two into their own net, while one red card turned the game on its head, the hosts eventually winning 5-4.
Whether City skipper Richie Smallwood will be left to regret his dismissal for a high, lunging tackle on Paul Glatzel forever, or if it just becomes a minor footnote in a successful season, remains to be seen. In terms of this game though, it was the key factor that turned a likely victory into a devastating defeat. On a lunchtime which was initially dominated by throw-ins, the main talking part afterwards was how City had thrown the points away.
There was some consolation from results elsewhere, as of their five automatic promotion rivals, only Port Vale won, so City remain second in League Two with their fate in their own hands. But it could have been so much better, with a start beyond anyone connected with Bradford City’s wildest dreams, coming off the back of a pre-match build up dominated in heart-warming fashion by Stephen Darby, who served both clubs with distinction. Suffering with Motor Neurone Disease since 2018, Stephen Darby is still hugely loved by Bradford City fans, who paid tribute at Swindon with this brilliant flag in his honour behind the goal.
(Image: Tom Pearson) The Bantams controlled possession in the opening five minutes before taking the lead with one of the simplest goals you will ever see. Brad Halliday's long throw travelled all the way to the near post without a touch, where Kavanagh steered a volley past Connor Ripley from six yards out. And the Bantams were in dreamland after going 2-0 up inside 10 minutes.
Alex Pattison’s cross was too short, but a botched headed clearance dropped perfectly for Kavanagh to sweep it home, the ball kissing the post on the way in. Calum Kavanagh made a lightning start to the game, putting City 2-0 up inside 10 minutes. (Image: Tom Pearson) Swindon almost got straight back in it, as Kirk waved away what looked to be a certain foul on Pattison 30 yards from his own go.
Harry Smith was fed the ball on the edge of the box, he backheeled it to the unmarked Kabongo Tshimanga, whose effort was tame and Sam Walker was able to plunge on it. Smallwood then had a cross flicked on to the back post, but Tayo Adaramola walloped a tricky volley well over the crossbar. And that proved to be the skipper’s penultimate act, as his last one saw him pick up a straight red and a three-match ban.
Smallwood trudged off despairingly as striker Glatzel received treatment, with Bantams boss Graham Alexander booked for his angry protests over the dismissal. After play resumed following a lengthy delay, it did not take long for Swindon to halve the deficit. New skipper Pattison played a disastrous pass straight to Billy Kirkman on the left, whose low ball across goal was inadvertently turned past Walker by Neill Byrne.
City still posed a threat on the counter attack, and they exposed Swindon two on one, but after Pattison looked to have played Kavanagh in, Miguel Freckleton held his ground superbly and made a great tackle in the box. Another decent chance saw Adaramola’s cut back deflected to Brandon Khela on the edge of the box, but he lost the ball and then compounded the error by flattening Glatzel and picking up a booking. Tayo Adaramola brought his usual attacking threat, even if that took on a different complexion in the second half.
(Image: Tom Pearson) Talented young attacker Botan Ameen came on for Kirkman after just 28 minutes as Swindon manager Ian Holloway went for broke, and he made an immediate impact. The youngster cut inside Halliday and fizzed a nice effort towards goal, but it went straight down Walker's throat. Instead, City restored their two-goal lead, as Swindon once again failed miserably to deal with a Halliday long throw.
It was allowed to travel to the centre of the six-yard box, then bounced over a defender's head, allowing Kavanagh to stab the loose ball under Ripley for his hat-trick. Glatzel wanted a penalty but he was never getting one after insisting he was caught going for a bouncing ball by Romoney Crichlow, with the striker spooning an effort way over the bar after good work from Ameen moments later. Will Wright flashed a long-range strike towards goal, then at the other end, the defender cut out a dangerous attack involving Pattison, Bobby Pointon and Kavanagh.
That intervention proved crucial, as Swindon halved the deficit on the stroke of half-time. Captain Ollie Clarke, back in the side following a calf problem, dragged a shot from the edge of the box that looked to be going harmlessly wide. But Tshimanga stayed alert, followed the ball in, and he slid it past Walker from two yards out.
Alexander decided to try and lock things down by bringing on Ciaran Kelly and Callum Johnson at the break for Pattison and Pointon, while Swindon boss Ian Holloway made it five attackers on the pitch by throwing Joe Westley and Danny Butterworth into the fray. The decision to bring Ciaran Kelly (right) on at the break looked to be a genius one with only a few minutes of the game left, but there was a last-gasp sting in the tail. (Image: Tom Pearson) Right at the start of the second half, Adaramola went down in the box after a clumsy push, but it would have been an extremely soft penalty, before Byrne was forced to hack clear from a couple of yards in front of his own goal after a cross wasn’t dealt with initially.
City almost conceded a controversial equaliser when there were two balls on the pitch, but Walker sprung up to make a great diving save from Ameen's shot that was flying towards the top corner, while he made a simpler stop from Butterworth off the back of the resulting corner. Fellow substitute Westley had a shot brilliantly blocked by Jack Shepherd into the side netting, but the away side’s resistance was broken after 62 minutes. A cross from Ameen dropped to Smith on the penalty spot, and he squeezed it into the bottom corner past Walker to level.
City should have gone back in front immediately when Halliday's long throw was flicked on by Byrne into the box. Kavanagh took his time and let it drop perfectly, but he was unable to slam it past Ripley from close range, the keeper making himself big and making a great save. Seconds later, Westley burst through after an error by Kelly, but City got numbers back to deflect his shot out for a corner.
Swindon kept coming, as Ameen burst into the box but scuffed his cross straight at the keeper, before Tom Nichols whipped a long range curler straight down Walker's throat. Antoni Sarcevic came on with 15 minutes to go for his first appearance after six weeks out injured and he made an instant impact to help 10-man City restore their lead. After a brilliant one-two between him and Adaramola, the number 10 dummied the ball to allow Kavanagh to romp forward.
The striker then played a ball to Sarcevic in the box, who was forced wide but still manage to draw a save out of Ripley. The rebound broke back to Halliday, who drilled home the loose ball via a deflection to instigate pandemonium in the away end of the County Ground. Callum Johnson roars with delight after City restore their lead through Brad Halliday.
(Image: Tom Pearson) George Cox almost immediately responded, getting on the end of a deep cross, but he headed it over the bar. Swindon looked to be panicking, wasting several decent crossing opportunities and seeing Joel Cotterill produce a stupid 30-yard shot straight at Walker when he had men in the box. Tensions were high and a small scrap broke out after a pull on Adaramola, which saw both Butterworth and the City wing back booked, two minutes after Shepherd had suffered the same fate for timewasting.
Halliday had also been yellow carded earlier for timewasting at a throw-in, but City’s spoiling tactics looked to be paying off. They almost grabbed a fifth goal, as Johnson won a long ball from Walker’s booming kick upfield then saw it come back to him after Kavanagh advanced it forward. But he got underneath the chance, blazing the loose ball over the bar from the edge of the box.
A brilliant block from Sarcevic then stopped Nnamdi Ofoborh from screaming a volley into the net, before Walker just did enough to keep out Smith from a corner. Yet as the game ticked towards injury-time, Swindon finally got a cross right, as Cox swung in a peach of a delivery for Smith to send a towering header into the net. Almost immediately, the board went up to signal seven minutes of added-time, and Smith was perhaps lucky to only see yellow after violently barging over Shepherd in frustration.
Walker kept out Ameen after he had jinked his way past a couple of challenges in the box, before Swindon grabbed a dramatic 95th-minute winner. Swindon's stoppage-time winner left both Calum Kavanagh and Brad Halliday down on their haunches. (Image: Tom Pearson) Freckleton sent a low ball into the box and stretching to turn it behind for a corner, Shepherd diverted it into his own net.
He suffered the added indignation of being goaded by some of Swindon’s players in the manic celebrations that followed. This time, there was no way back, as City’s race was finally run..
