The Voice - Match preview Grimsby Town vs Bradford City Monday 1st April 2024 1:00pm

EFL LEAGUE TWO FIXTURE #41

Monday 1st April 2024 13:00
Grimsby Town (21st) vs Bradford City (14th)
Blundell Park

22/23 & 23/24 Results:

22 Oct 2022: Grimsby Town 0 – 0 Bradford City
01 Apr 2023: Bradford City 3 – 2 Grimsby Town
09 Sep 2023: Bradford City 1 – 1 Grimsby Town
10 Oct 2023: Grimsby Town 1 – 2 Bradford City [EFL Trophy]

Head-to-Head Form: WDWDW (most recent result first)

Won: 31
Drawn: 18
Lost: 18

Current League Form:

Bradford City: WLLLL
Grimsby Town: LLDWD

GRIMSBY TOWN

While some fans will see their sides’ seasons wind down over the next 6-8 games (depending on how many they have left), Grimsby Town supporters will have no such luxury. That is because Grimsby Town are just 3 points above the dreaded drop zone and could yet face a return to non-league after just 2 seasons back in the EFL.

While Grimsby Town do have a couple of games in hand over their main rivals in that relegation battle, Sutton United (23rd) have rather remarkably rattled off 3 straight wins to close the gap significantly in recent games. Colchester United, who sit between Sutton United and Grimsby Town in 22nd place, have played a game fewer than even Grimsby, perhaps making them favourites to avoid the drop – though they would rather have the points already on the board for sure!

That is the focus now for Grimsby Town – they have a packed couple of weeks with 4 games in 2 weeks to play after Bank Holiday Monday’s game against Bradford City, including a pivotal clash with Colchester United: they will not want to go into that match still needing a win, and will hope to put the season to bed before then. Targeting 3 points against an inconsistent Bradford City side and ending a 2-game skid would be just the tonic.

Those back-to-back defeats have come against Wrexham (3rd) and Barrow (5th), two promotion chasing sides, but were preceded by a 6-game unbeaten run that saw them rack up home wins over Forest Green Rovers and Grimsby Town, both by a scoreline of 1-0. Away draws against all of Morecambe, AFC Wimbledon, Sutton United, and Gillingham proved that Grimsby Town are no slouches at this stage of the season and should not be underestimated.

Grimsby Town’s top scorers this season are Danny Rose (12) and Abo Eisa (9), backed up by Donovan Wilson (7) and Rekeil Pyke (4), two players who have made most of their appearances from the bench this season. Unfortunately for the Mariners, they have been without Rose for a 3 game spell, though he did return to the field on Friday afternoon in the 3-1 defeat against Barrow and could be back in contention for the Bradford City game. Former Bantam Abo Eisa has also been absent for a couple of games, but it remains to be seen if he will feature on Monday afternoon. It’s likely no coincidence that Grimsby’s better form lately came with the involvement of one or both of their top goalscorers, and the presence of either will be a major boost.



Barrow 3 – 1 Grimsby Town

BRADFORD CITY

Bradford City have had a tumultuous week, with owner Stefan Rupp issuing an ‘open letter’ to Bradford City fans promising greater involvement and investment going forward, but that was not enough to prevent a protest ahead of Friday afternoon’s tie with Tranmere Rovers – a game the Bantams won 2-0, and deservedly so.

Bradford City came in on a 4-game slump (and what a slump it was!) but made minor amends by seeing off their Birkenhead opponents thanks to goals from Calum Kavanagh and Bobby Pointon. Kavanagh and Pointon had both been missing in recent games, Kavanagh thanks to a fruitless trip to join up with the Ireland U21’s side, but it seems Pointon was simply out of favour. As the calls of Bradford City fans to restore the exciting home-grown talent to the first team grew ever louder, Graham Alexander seems to have listened – and was rewarded when Bobby slammed a stunning second into the roof of the net in front of the Kop.

That was enough to temporarily distract from the misery piling up at Valley Parade, and there might be a more positive atmosphere inside the City dressing room ahead of a second Easter weekend game against Grimsby Town. A win here, and the gloom might just lift enough to convince a few more season ticket holders to renew – that will certainly be the hope of Stefan Rupp and Ryan Sparks, whose performance has come under intense scrutiny of late.

On the pitch, though, nightmarish performances against Harrogate Town, Notts County, Mansfield Town, and Forest Green Rovers will not soon be forgotten, particularly given Bradford City might have had an outside shot at the play offs had they not produced 4 successive confidence-shattering capitulations. But who knows – a few wins on the bounce, and talk of a 7th place finish might return, but for now, it looks like the season is over and pride is the biggest prize to play for.

That pride, hopefully now restored, should travel to North East Lincolnshire on Monday afternoon – but that doesn’t mean the game will be easy. All eyes will be on players like Kavanagh and Pointon, though Tyler Smith also looked lively, with Andy Cook completely absent from both the starting XI and the bench on Friday. For Smith, sloppy finishing was the main reason he failed to register a goal on a night of many chances – if he can keep getting game time, he might just be able to prove his detractors wrong, though man of the match Pointon will be getting the plaudits if he puts in a similar performance in Grimsby.



Bradford City 2 – 0 Tranmere Rovers

THE BREAKDOWN

6/4: Grimsby Town
5/2: Draw
13/8: Bradford City

Grimsby Town will see little to fear in visitors Bradford City, even though the Bantams out-played and out-performed Tranmere Rovers on a truly shocking surface on Friday afternoon. Tranmere, who never got going at all, look like they might let their season peter out, but Bradford City don’t have that luxury as they fight tooth and nail to convince fans that next season will be a worthwhile endeavour and not just a budgetary exercise for owner Stefan Rupp and CEO Ryan Sparks.

As fans now wait for news on some of the promises outlined by Rupp, they will be expectant that performances on the pitch are maintained, too. Some of City’s efforts of late have been nothing short of embarrassing, but that wasn’t the case last time out. Rejuvenated by young players like Kavanagh and Pointon, the question is, can Bradford City continue to build momentum?

Grimsby Town will probably go into this game expecting at least a point, and preferably a vital win in their campaign to stave off relegation. While they have lost 2 straight games, both were against better performing sides in the division, a level Bradford City simply haven’t achieved at all this season. It’s unlikely Grimsby Town will regard City as being in that same bracket, and in truth, that’s fair.

For all the talk of club size, heritage, and potential horsepower, this has been a woeful campaign from Bradford City. Hugely inconsistent, Bradford City have at times put in quality, character-driven performances against some of the top sides, and harrowing, dismal outings against some of those towards the wrong end of the table. They have also been dismantled multiple times recently, and while one would hope those kinds of outcomes won’t be repeated again this season, that doesn’t elevate Bradford City above their rightful station – they are, and have looked all season, distinctly mediocre.

The pick will be a 1-1 draw, an outcome that looks like likely based on Grimsby Town’s recent results, though if City really are at it there’s no reason they cannot produce a similar scoreline to the one on Friday afternoon.

As an interesting caveat, Bradford City have not lost to Grimsby Town in any of their last TWENTY games - dating back to 1998!

PREDICTION:

Grimsby Town 1 – 1 Bradford City