www.boyfrombrazil.co.uk players of the season

1. Claus Jorgensen

   Nobody likes Claus Jorgensen, or so it seemed for a long time and so it seems now that he has decided his future lay away from Valley Parade. Claus was the star turn last season but was back on the bench, if he was lucky, at the start of this. His honest approach and confidence in his own abilities kept him ticking over until he got the call, he did against Burnley getting City the last gasp draw and still he struggled until near record breaking goal exploits showed all what Jorgi could do. Next season he could be with someone else but wherever he is if he can maintain this form International caps must await.

2. Mark Bower

   Mark Bower is the quiet revolution. 13 months ago he looked like a free transfer to Halifax, now he is looking at next season as a regular in the back four. His turnaround is not a trumpeted as the emergence of other players but it is no less impressive and one hopes that the likes of Forrest and Francis can get past the inevitable drop in form that Mark suffered and come back so strongly.

3. Andy Gray

   Player’s Player of the Season who has retooled his game to replace Ashley Ward as line leading forward and ended the season well into double figures for goals scored. Gray’s real success this season has been his response to the Bantam’s many hours of need. He arrived in the Summer when it looked as if there would be no club and in the spirit that got us through rolled up his sleeves and played wherever he was asked with all his ability.

4. Lewis Emanuel

   It is an open secret that Mani’s time at City has not been all plain sailing but it is credit to the refreshed attitude of the young left sided player that he has put things behind him and emerged not only as one of the brightest prospects the club has produced but one of the brightest players the club have. Found his role on the left hand side of midfield and improved with every game. Did will ignoring agent Peter Jackson’s advice to join Huddersfield in the Summer.

5. Simon Francis

   What sort of world does Simon Francis live in? You are meandering about the Notts area when you get the call to go North and play a couple of games for a club that was in the Premiership a couple of years back. Not only that but on arrival the consensus takes shape that you worth a pop in the first eleven and by the end of the season you are having Young Player of The Season awards thrown at you. Big things expected next season.

6. Danny Forrest

   Every club, every supporter, wants a Danny Forrest. The Local Boy In The Photograph on the back page of Monday’s paper Forrest has had the dream start to his VP career. Already a huge weight is placed on the young man’s shoulders but he seems confident enough to take it on and as with Alan Shearer at Newcastle United and Emile Heskey at the Pool the fans love a fan on the field.

Harvey Greenwood’s young player of the year award

Simon Francis

Like many of the young ‘stars’ that have played a part this season Simon Francis has taken to the task and grabbed the opportunity of first team football with both hands. The biggest compliment I can give is that if you did not know the age & background of any of the players on the pitch in any match this season that Simon has played you would think he was one of the old campaigners.

Maturity on the pitch way beyond his years, cool, calm, strong, always creates time for himself on the ball, and more pace than his running style suggests. Has looked comfortable in all areas he has been asked to play including all positions across the back four, centre and right midfield.

A great prospect for the future and if he keeps going and keeps his head down surely has an international future. If Forest (Nottingham that is!) can let players like Simon go, then they must have an abundance of serious talent up their sleeves.

Jonathan Jackson’s senior player of the year award

Gus Uhlenbeek

At times infuriating, but like Jamie Lawrence, “Gooose” is all action and makes up for lack of finesse with effort. Better going forward that on the backfoot, but still worth another punt if he will take Gordon Gibb’s £1,500 per week.

Like most of the 30somethings, he wouldn’t come within in a country mile (this season) of being the true “Player Of The Year”, but as the least injured, he stands out from the bunch.

Finest victories

1. A Paul Evans free kick gives City the win at Portman Road… Ipswich Town 1 Bradford City 2
2. Two weeks later they dumped Newcastle United out of the FA Cup but… Wolves 1 Bradford City 2
3. The game that launched the new era for City’s bright young things… Bradford City 2 Ipswich Town 0
4. Bantams getting beaten every week and one of the division’s brightest teams rolls into town. They go away… Bradford City 1 Nottingham Forest 0
5. You never get anything at Grimsby unless you scrap for it. Stand for the Bantam battlers that ended up… Grimsby Town 1 Bradford City 2

Five on the road. We got some great away wins at…

1. Ipswich Town 1 Bradford City 2
2. Wolves 1 Bradford City 2
3. Burnley 0 Bradford City 2
4. Coventry City 0 Bradford City 2
5. Grimsby Town 1 Bradford City 2

Donde esta Tonto? City’s loan rangers in quality order:

1. Michael Proctor
2. Steve Banks
3. Stephen Warnock
4. Delroy Facey
5. Laurens Ten Heuvel
6. Boaz Myhill
7. Harpal Singh

Best goals

1. Danny Forrest’s scissor kick at home to Walsall.
2. Robert Molenaar’s Ahab liked header against Nottingham Forest at Valley Parade.
3. 90 minutes on the clock, it’s 1-1 with Grimsby and Claus Jorgensen has just unleashed a rocket to the top corner.
4. Andy Gray tucks it into Ashley Ward who lays it back to Gray for a 25 yarder. Shame it was only a friendly against Middlesbrough.
5. A free kick some 30 yards out away at Ipswich and up sets Paul Evans
6. A corner cleared by Norwich at Valley Parade but only as far as debut boy Paul Reid who lashes it back into the top corner of Robert Green’s goal.
7. Lots wrong with Wimbledon’s 5-3 win at VP but nothing wrong with Michael Standing’s accurate pass into the top corner.
8. Two minutes into injury time and City are playing Burnley and the Ref when Claus Jorgensen starts his slalom run between the Burnley back line, he hits the post but it bounces to Michael Proctor. Not a great goal but we have not seen such unfettered hurly burly since the fall of Saigon.

Five most stupid sendings off

1. Danny Cadamarteri’s red for standing near a guy who got the ball in his face against Burnley.
2. Reading’s Nathan Tyson getting his marching orders in the Royal’s 1-0 win at VP. We still don’t know why.
3. Jamie Lawrence jumps in the air, Danny Maddix nags the ref and that is the end of the Bantam winger’s City career against Sheffield Wednesday.
4. Mark Bower going nowhere near the diving cheating Papadopoulos who also played for Burnley and getting two yellow cards.
5. Stephen Warnock getting given a red card after piling in on Derby’s Adam Murray who was let off a red for cutting Mark Bower in half.

Five times the Refs got the reds right

1. Ipswich Town’s big boys bullied little Simon Francis all afternoon at VP until Herman Hreidarsson got a red for elbowing the City’s favourite non-voter in the face.
2. Adam Murray getting sent off for cutting Mark Bower in half for Derby at Valley Parade. Shame it later got overturned.
3. Simon Francis learns his lessons after chopping down two Girmsby Town players in two injury time minutes.
4. Arthur Gnohere couldn’t deal with the slippy Bantams over at Burnley.
5. Gus Ulhenbeek must have loved his old Sheffield United team mates so much that he tried an on field amputation during the 5-0 drubbing at VP

Five decisions that left you scratching your head (Not all by Refs either)

1. Brighton’s not a goal at Valley Parade
2. Nicky Law has to pick between Adrian Littlejohn and Danny Forrest. He want for Littlejohn, fate gave us Forrest
3. Martin McIntosh brings down Ashley Ward clean through at Rotherham… why no red card?
4. “Nothing ever came of wingers” Joe Royle’s Ipswich goes for the 333 formation at Valley Parade and gets duffed.
5. The penalty for Sheffield United. “What for!” screamed the players, and those were the ones in red and white!

Five things that will mark out next season

1. A fit Danny Cadamarteri being a force next season.
2. The return of Paul Evans.
3. Nicky Law trying to use a 433 formation.
4. Lots of interest in Lewis Emanuel and a call up to the England u21 side.
5. Nicky Law being judged on how close City are to eighth spot in the league.

City players to looking to be next year’s Danny Forrest

1. Ben Muirhead has not done the business at Valley Parade yet but if he can do what he did at Burnley away then he will get the VP faithful on collective feet.
2. Kevin Sanasy is still scoring goals in the reserves without his striking partner Forrest.
3. Tom Penfold has impressed Nicky Law and made his debut at Preston.
4. Daniel Ekoku is big for his age, has bags of skill and is already in the first team squad.
5. Jake Wright is just a kid at City at the moment but already there is some buzz around the full back.

Five reasons to look forward to next season

1. Ashley Ward is in the final year of his contract.
2. We have a team of exciting young kids.
3. We never have to see Aidan Davison come out for a punch only to flounder on the rocks of his own back four.
4. We have got rid of the dross and kept the better senior players.
5. Honest Tom Kearney is back in the squad after his injury.

What 2002-2003 gave us that we had never had in 100 years of the Bantams

1. Administration! Because last time we were in that state the legal process was different.
2. Crazy Refs! Mike Dean was the worst in what was a season of unprecedented terrible officialship.
3. Goals! When was the last time City had someone who could bang in away goals like Claus Jorgensen? Never that is when.
4. Young! City got young this season with the likes of Danny Forrest, Simon Francis and Lewis Emanuel becoming mainstays in the side but the real baby is Gordon Gibb who is a good five years younger the captain David Wetherall and gives a decade and a half to the manager Nicky Law.
5. Scouse! “Should I compare thee to a scouser child?” Never in the history of football have so many players been compared to a small scruffy child from Liverpool. Even our baby Danny Forrest is a year older than the ubiquitous Wayne Rooney.

Five good chuckles this season

1. “We lived the dream” Peter Risdale and the season long sales at Leeds have been a constant source of amusement all year. “Still got a team of internationals” the Leedser’s say, “Still selling players in the summer” is our reply. Expect Mark Viduka to go Italian, Harry Kewell to Liverpool or and Adam Smith to Manchester United in the next three months.
2. Let us never forget that this is the season of Ryan Giggs and that open goal
3. The campaign of terror waged in the City Gent that drove out Geoffrey Richmond. After eight years of the old fella one thing was abundantly clear about GR, he did what he wanted and was not to be “driven out” of anywhere despite the CG’s claims that he was keeping Weapons of Mass Destruction at Appley Bridge.
4. We all hope that Huddersfield Town survive as a club but the fall to division three has been very funny.
5. The fact that www.wembleynationalstadium.co.uk still does not work. Well it amuses me ;-)