Saturday 25 July 2009
Pre-Season Friendly
Bradford City 0
Barnsley 2 (Foster 30, Macken 61)
Kick Off: 3.00pm
at the Coral Windows Stadium

Attendance: 1859 (visitors 559)

Stuart McCall warned that City must learn lessons from the two goals that cost them dearly in the pre-season friendly against Barnsley at Valley Parade.

A goal in each half gave the Championship side a 2-0 win - Bradford's first defeat in the pre-season campaign - and McCall said: "On the negative side, we gave two goals away.

"One was from a set-piece, which everyone knows is crucial in modern-day football, and the other when we gave the ball away deep in our own half.

"These are valuable lessons we have got to learn from the match but there were a lot of positives as well and I think for a good spell in the first half we were the better side.

"We defended well against good Championship players, and we had some good movement and a good passage of play in the first half, but in the second half we got a little bit sloppy.

"I am never pleased to lose a game but all in all I was really happy with our display. I thought it was a decent work-out and I was pleased with it."

McCall played somewhere near his full-strength side in the first half against a near first-choice Barnsley line-up and there was some pleasing link-up play between strikers Peter Thorne and Michael Boulding and Chris Brandon the left.

McCall looks well covered up front with proven goal-scorers Thorne and Boulding, and new signings Gareth Evans from Macclesfield and James Hanson from Guiseley providing cover and competition.

However, he knows he needs more strength in the centre of midfield, where trialists Grant Smith and James O'Brien - who played half a game each - failed to make an impact and the search for new blood in that part of the team will continue.

Boulding, who has looked sharp and eager in pre-season games, had City's two best first-half efforts.

First, Brandon linked well with him before playing the ball through for Boulding to shoot across the face of goal.

Then, Thorne - captain for the day - combined well with Boulding, whose fierce cross-shot was turned away by goalkeeper Luke Steele.

In between, only a last-ditch tackle from former City defender Darren Moore thwarted Thorne after another smart piece of play involving him and Brandon.

However, Barnsley went ahead against the run of play in the 30th minute when City's defence failed to clear a corner from Argentinian midfield player Hugo Colace and skipper Stephen Foster came running in at the far post to head the visitors into the lead.

Four minutes later, City had the misfortune to lose Zesh Rehman, who was injured in a clash of heads with fellow defender Steve Williams.

Both had treatment on the field but, while Williams played on, Rehman was led away and had to have three stitches inserted in a wound on the back of the head.

Simon Ramsden, City's new signing from Rochdale, moved into the centre of defence and fellow new boy Jonathan Bateson took his place at right back.

McCall had a special word of praise for Ramsden, saying: "I thought he was excellent at right back and centre back."

The City boss introduced new loan goalkeeper Simon Eastwood in place of Jon McLaughlin at half-time.

The hosts' good work in attack continued as Boulding had another fine effort blocked by Rob Kozluk after being put through by Brandon, while Moore dangerously sliced Luke O'Brien's centre over his own crossbar.

However, Barnsley gradually took control and scored a second goal after 61 minutes following a bad mistake by James O'Brien.

His attempted clearance was intercepted by Jacob Butterfield, who played the ball through to last season's joint top-scorer Jon Macken, the substitute beating Eastwood with an angled shot.

As Barnsley pressed forward, Eastwood did well to save from Nigerian striker Kayode Odejayi.

There was a procession of substitutes from both sides in the second half and McCall gave 24 minutes each to strikers Evans and Hanson.

Neither had much chance to shine but Evans cut in from the left four minutes from the end before forcing Steele to save his right-foot shot at the near post.

BRADFORD CITY	BARNSLEY
1 Jon McLaughlin	1 Luke Steele
2 Simon Ramsden	2 Bobby Hassell
3 Luke O'Brien	3 Rob Kuzluk
4 Grant Smith	4 Darren Moore
5 Zesh Rehman	5 Hugo Colace
6 Steve Williams	6 Stephen Foster
7 Joe Colbeck	8 Jamal Campbell-Ryce
8 Lee Bullock	9 Kayode Odejayi
9 Michael Boulding	10 Daniel Bogdanovic
10 Peter Thorne	11 Martin Devaney
11 Chris Brandon	19 Jacob Butterfield
Substitutes:	Substitutes:
12 Jonathan Bateson for 5 (39)	12 David Preece
13 Simon Eastwood for 1 (46)	22 Luke Potter for 4 (72)
14 James O'Brien for 4 (46)	23 Mounir El Haimour for 3 (82)
15 Louis Horne	20 Reuben Lazarus for 8 (82)
16 Luke Sharry for 8 (76)	21 Jon Macken for 10 (53)
17 Leon Osborne for 11 (66)	7 Iain Hume for 11 (69)
18 Gareth Evans for 9 (66)	16 Onome Sodje for 9 (69)
19 James Hanson for 10 (66)	17 Jamil Adam for 19 (87)
	18 Jordan Hibbert for 5 (85)

MATCH OFFICIALS:
Referee	J Moss
Assistant referee	R Hewitt
Assistant referee	M Astley
4th official	A Madley

GOALSCORERS:
BRADFORD CITY	BARNSLEY
	Foster (30)
	Macken (61)