BRADFORD CITY AFC

At a drizzly Apperley Bridge, a goal in each half from Walsall striker Cameron Peters secured the victory for the visitors.

City's starting line up for the fixture was made up largely of apprentices. 

A number of Stuart McCall's first team squad, including Matthew Kilgallon, Rory McArdle, Nathan Clarke, Haris Vuckic, Daniel Devine and Rouven Sattelmaier, were all given game-time in a private friendly against Liverpool at their Melwood training ground on Sunday.

Vincent Rabiega and Ellis Hudson, who recently signed his first professional contract with the club, were both given ninety minutes against Walsall.

Peters opened the scoring just before the half hour mark for the Saddlers when he robbed Reece Powell of the ball just outside City's penalty area to leave him with a clear run on goal.

One-on-one with George Sykes-Kenworthy, Peters coolly fired low into the corner past the Bantams shot-stopper to break the deadlock.

Rabiega went close to levelling things up for City shortly afterwards when he received the ball in space inside the box but his low drive was tipped around the post by Walsall 'keeper, and former City apprentice, Chandler Hallwood.

In the early stages of the second half, Hudson fired over for City from the edge of the box while Florent Cuvelier struck a curling effort wide of Sykes-Kenworthy's far post at the other end minutes later.

Cuvelier managed to test Sykes-Kenworthy with his next effort, a low angled drive which was pushed behind by the City custodian, before the Saddlers doubled their lead through Peters ten minutes into the second period.

From a wide free-kick, Jordon Sangha played the ball back to Sam Tonks and the right back crossed for Peters to head home past Sykes-Kenworthy.

Peters had a chance to grab his third of the afternoon later in the half when the ball was pulled back to him from the byline by Liam Kinsella but the striker's shot for goal was vitally diverted over by the out-stretched leg of Harry Warren.

City tried to engineer a way back into the contest when Rabiega teed up Hudson after the striker had latched onto Tom Windle's well-judged forward pass.

Rabiega laid the ball back to Hudson but the winger's side-footed effort from just inside the box was pulled wide of Hallwood's far post.

Apprentice midfielder Curtis Peters was introduced into the action eighteen minutes from the end for City, and the substitute threatened to trouble the scorers when he fired narrowly the wrong side of the far post from the edge of the box after Powell and Hudson had worked a short corner.

In the closing stages of the game, Rabiega saw a shot blocked from deep inside the area by a recovering Kory Roberts after the Pole had previously beaten the Walsall defender to Sam Wright's ball over the top.

The final opportunity of note in the match fell the way of Peters when he and Kinsella led a bright Walsall counter-attack.

The striker sprinted clear into the box but Wright was able to do just enough to prevent him from getting a clean strike in and Sykes-Kenworthy was on hand to gobble up the weak effort.

1. George Sykes-Kenworthy

2. Tom Windle
3. Harry Warren
4. Kwame Boateng
5. Alex Laird

6. Sam Wright
7. Ville Moilanen
8. Reece Powell
9. Vincent Rabiega
10. Niah Payne (c)
11. Ellis Hudson

12. Ross Mullet (GK)
14. Curtis Peters

Substitutions:
Peters for Moilanen (72)