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Club News

The right characteristics required

17 April 2014

Club News

The right characteristics required

17 April 2014

Bantams boss Phil Parkinson wants City to shown the same discipline and resiliency they have been showing on the road in recent weeks when Play-Off hopefuls Peterborough United arrive at the Coral Windows Stadium this Friday evening.

City return to home soil on Good Friday after a praiseworthy point at Rotherham United a week ago. The draw at the New York Stadium meant Parkinson's side have collected eight points and four clean sheets from their last five away fixtures.

The Bantams' home form over the last few weeks hasn't made for such enjoyable reading, however, and Parkinson wants that to finally end in City's penultimate home fixture of the season against Peterborough.

Despite being at home on Friday, Parkinson feels his side need to concentrate on reproducing the same sort of structured and organised displays that have helped them taste success on the road recently.

Parkinson said: "We have to show the same sort of resiliency we have been doing in away matches in our home games now.

"We shouldn't have to think we need to do anything different because we're at home.

"There has been a determination in our defending away from home recently, especially against high-scoring sides like Leyton Orient, Coventry and Rotherham.

"I just sense that sometimes at home we feel we have to do something different. We don't though.

"We still have to be disciplined and resolute in our defending and have a good shape to the team.

"The work we did on our shape and our structure in the game helped us to get the results we did against Leyton Orient and Rotherham. 

"We are going up against another good side in Peterborough on Friday, and we're going to have to make sure we are disciplined and organised again.

"We will have to be solid and try to make sure we stay in the game.

"We want to take the characteristics that we have shown away from home into our home games"

Good Friday's clash with Peterborough is followed by a Bank Holiday Monday match at Swindon Town for City over a bumper Easter weekend.

With two fixtures in quick succession for League 1 sides over the next few days, Parkinson knows the table has the potential to change quite dramatically in a relatively short space of time.

He won't let the prospect of a forthcoming trip to Swindon affect his selection for the Friday Peterborough match, however.

Parkinson continued: "A lot can change over this weekend. A number of things could be decided.

"The Easter weekend is always a pivotal one in the football calendar. If you look across all four divisions, there is still a lot at stake as we come towards the close of the season.

"With our games coming Friday night and Monday, we at least have two full days to prepare and recover between fixtures. The recover time is pretty much the same for everyone really.

"We will pick a team who we feel can do the job on Friday against Peterborough. After that, we'll regroup and decide on the team for Swindon on Monday."



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