Match Thread Cheltenham Town v Bradford City FA Cup 1st Round - Sat 1 Nov 2025 3pm

I actually think we will give these a good beating
I would be less confident if we werent creating chances but we are and lots of them.
Still thevonly thing that is worrying is how the crowd react if we aint 2 or 3 up at Ht

 

I don’t think it’s excessive criticism, more frank and honest realism that he’s had a bad injury at the twilight of his career and we may need to stop relying on him as our main / only source of goals. We got promoted without him, playing an almost forced changed formation / style and we sit 2nd in the league without him, also playing a different style of football that probably doesn’t suit him.
He’s also in the last year of his contract here and unlikely to get a new deal.
There’s absolutely no denying what he’s done for this club and without his goals since he’s been here, who knows where we’d be.
James Hanson got some dogs abuse on here and in the stands before he left. Why? Because his goals dried up, he started missing easy chances and it cost us points.
I love Cookie but there’s no room for sentiment if he’s not the player he was before his injury.
I will add that Cook and also Hanson for that matter scores the majority of goals from headers and we simply aren’t a team that launches the ball into the box anymore.
You are right though that he’s only just come back and played a full 90 so he deserves the chance to prove me and others wrong and that he can step up a level.
The next 2 games we should be taking 6 points. Let’s see peoples attitude if we draw or lose them both.

 

You make some good points there and I'm of the opinion that our hero should be an impact sub off the bench which has been fruitful so far in his comeback, others will have a different view and I accept that ..
He's no more to blame for yesterdays poor result as anyone else ...

 

All fair points imo. As much as we all love him, whether we like it or not, at 35 he is in the latter part of his career. Add to that, it's several years since he played regularly at this level, and hes just coming back off one of the worst injuries that can happen to a pro footballer.
Im not writing him off by any means, but he is no longer our automatic go to front man and rightly so.

 

Well, that's what they did at Cardiff.
If we want to know how they'll play against us then just watch how they played at Cardiff.

 

But there comes a time when he and the management team will want to know if he can start and then if he can get through 90 minutes. Its part of his rehab still, really. He (and we) need to know how far he can push himself. Im sure they're going through all the data today on sprints, distance covered, heart rate etc to see how it changed through the game.

This game was as good as any to give him a start in. I dont feel it was a bad thing at all.

 

Makes you wonder,what is the point of a 4th official

 

Watching the video, ref blows once, when the free kick is in the middle of been taken.
Poor timing and definitely a distraction for all players.
He won't have thought that was an issue as he had his back to the free kick taker.
Poor officiating.

 

This is not about sentiment it’s about allowing a player who has an excellent career with City a few matches to see if he continues to make progress. He looks fit and is definitely not carrying any weight; he has been working hard. I don’t think we should be writing anyone off on age alone. He played yesterday without our best wingers. There was loads of chances to score but we had no luck in front of goal.
We know what he is capable of and so do our opposition and so far they have man marked him with two players and some three so I guess they are not judging him on his age or injury.

 

The referee needs suspending from his referee duties. The cards issued to Wright and Alexander (assuming it was for protesting the goal) need to be rescinded. It won't happen though. The FA and officials aren't fit for purpose.

 

To be fair, one of my criticisms last season was not shooting enough. Certainly been rectified this season however more goals would be nice. (I know, some folk are never happy )

 

Age is just a number and I think Cookie keeps himself in good nick, but agreeing with some other folk he doesn't necessarily suit our system. I'd love to be proved wrong as he still looks sharp for his age.

 

For me it's all about the system. What we developed after Cook's injury was a 3-4-3 system with a high press which brought us promotion and which we recruited for in the summer, particularly with Swan and Humphrys. The system has continued to bring us success this year. Cookie just doesn't fit that system so we either change the system to accommodate him, which is clearly impractical, or he is used solely as an impact sub if we're chasing the game. GA has to stick to his principles and the system. It's no coincidence to me that our recent dip in form has coincided with the return to fitness of Cook and Kavanagh and Graham's inexplicable determination to shoehorn them both into the team somehow.

 

On what basis can you blame Cook for our resent performances when he has only started the one game, my point stands a more sedate sport would probably be better for someone like yourself who has a knee jerk reaction when things dont go our way.

 

Wow.
I'm more than happy with the way Alexander building our club and if that means having a word or two in the 4th officials ear when he believes we're not getting a fair rub of the green so be it.

 

First start back after 9 months out with a potential career ending injury for a player his age and a few (not one) are having a go, you have to wonder about their footballing knowledge.

 

Agree. In every other walk of life scrutiny is there so that everyone knows what is happening and where improvements need to be made. If a manager cannot ask how a referee came to his decision without invoking a sending off then the game will slide into disrespect and fans will just fade away.