David Hopkin was left frustrated following the Bantams’ defeat to Barnsley.
Despite starting the game on the front foot, City were unable to hold out against their fifth-placed opponents - and trailed 2-0 at half-time.
Bantams manager Hopkin admitted the reaction to the first goal invited a second for Saturday’s hosts.
He said: “We started the first 25 minutes well. Our shape and system was working fine and we were on the front foot.
“We got a few quality balls into the box to try and create something and we did through a number of corners.
“But we switched off and the players have got to do better with the goal.
“All of a sudden you are 1-0 down, which invites the second in a short space of time.
“We went into the break two down. You cannot go to a place like Barnsley and give them those opportunities if you want to take points from the game.
“If we had kept it goalless in the first half then we could have had a chance.”
George Miller’s introduction at the start of the second half looked to inject new life into the Bantams.
But Hopkin’s men were ultimately unable to get on the scoresheet despite a change of formation.
Adam Chicksen was shown a red card on 89 minutes, allowing Barnsley to grab a third before the final whistle.
He added: “Hope Akpan wasn’t quite fit enough to start the game, so we had to play a few players out of position.
“But I don’t think it had an impact on the result. It was a lack of basic defending.
“They were able to nullify players like Jack Payne and David Ball, which shows how good of a team they are.
“They have a lot of quality and it showed as they kept coming at us in the second half.
“When we went down to 10 men, they grabbed the third goal - which was hard to take because of the support we took to Oakwell.
“The fans travelled – yet again – in their thousands and gave us fantastic support.
“Games against the likes of Barnsley are not going to determine where we finish the season.
“We have to make sure we pick up wins against the teams around us, which is what we will try to do against Southend on Saturday.”
Tickets for this weekend’s fixture are on sale now and can be purchased by CLICKING HERE or visiting the Northern Commercials Stadium’s ticket office during normal office hours.