Welcome to the Coral Windows Stadium for this afternoon's match against Bury. We extend a warm welcome to the players, officials and supporters who have made the short trip over the Pennines today.
I would like to begin by congratulating Bury on the tremendous season that they are having to date. They underlined their credentials with an excellent win against top of the table Rochdale on Monday night and, as their chairman is a personal friend of mine, I hope that they go on to win promotion come the end of the season. I wish them the best of luck - after today, of course.
After a long break from football here at the Coral Windows Stadium due to the severe winter weather we have experienced, we come into today's game on the back of a much-needed victory at Torquay United. Anyone who was at the game will tell you that we were the poorer of the two teams on show last week and it is fair to say that Torquay should have been out of sight before we scored. However, we were due a slice of luck and we certainly enjoyed the rub of the green last Saturday. Long may it continue!
I like to use this column to keep you up to date with some of the latest goings on at the club on and off the field. With this in mind, I want to draw your attention to the new Bradford City Affinity Group, which comprises of a selection of local firms who are doing their bit to support the football club.
Among the services offered through the Affinity Group are recruitment services, courtesy of Kalcrest. By using this service to look for a new job or, if you run a business, to source new members of staff, you can help the football club at the same time. The scheme works by generating a payback to the club every time a purchase is made and we are delighted by the breadth of products and services we have on offer, including financial services and utilities. I encourage all supporters to have a look at the club's official website and find out more about the savings you can make - whilst helping the club in the process.
I would also like to take this opportunity to flag up the fact that the 1911 Club is now open at lunchtimes during the week and we are keen for business people in particular to sample the excellent hospitality on offer. Families are also very welcome - so why not take advantage of our fantastic Mother's Day carvery on March 14 when you can dine from as little as £9.95. The carvery is proving very popular indeed and fans would be advised to book in advance.
Back to matters on the pitch and it is great to see Omar Daley going from strength to strength. During the last 15 minutes at Torquay he really ran their defence ragged and hopefully this bodes well for the rest of the season. It was also nice to see Peter Thorne back in action and it was only a superb save from their goalkeeper that prevented from marking his return with a goal. Peter is only two strikes away from netting 200 career league goals and I am sure we would all be delighted to see him notch up that landmark during the remainder of this campaign.
Finally, I was delighted that Steven O'Leary has signed a contract to the end of the season. He has shown glimpses of what he is capable of despite the injury that has kept him out for most of the campaign and he will be a valuable asset to the team. I expect to see him involved this afternoon.
Thanks for your continued support - let's cheer the lads to back-to-back victories today.
Enjoy the game
Mark Lawn
Joint chairman
