Davison frustrates Leicester attack

Bradford City 0 Leicester City

Hard-working Bradford City edged a step closer to First Division safety and denied Leicester a more significant stride towards the Premiership. The match was dominated for an hour by Micky Adams' team but ended with Bradford looking just as likely to come up with a winning goal, with the centre-half David Wetherall spurning the best chance of the night 11 minutes from time.

The home side's manager, Nicky Law, had asked for the "real" Bradford to show their faces after last Saturday's home defeat to Walsall. By that he meant the team that had done the double over promotion-chasing Ipswich rather than the outfit beaten home and away by struggling Brighton. This was much more like the former, Law even expressing disappointment afterwards not to have won, although Adams shared the same sentiment.

Andy Gray, whose recent form had attracted the Scotland coach Berti Vogts to Valley Parade, was overshadowed by an energetic performance by the 18-year-old Danny Forrest, who twice went close to giving Bradford an early lead.

For lengthy periods Forrest offered the only relief, with Bradford largely under the cosh, Leicester testing the home defence both through the aerial threat of Brian Deane and Trevor Benjamin as well as Paul Dickov's skills at ground level. Indeed, the Midlands side will wonder how they did not score before the interval.

Bradford's Northern Ireland goalkeeper, Aidan Davison, saw to that. He somehow managed to block a Benjamin effort from point-blank range and scrambled away a clever back-heel by Dickov, although there was little he could do about an Elliott drive that thumped against the crossbar.

Leicester began the second half much as they had ended the first, Benjamin and Jordan Stewart both going close, Davison producing another pair of useful saves, but as the contest moved into the final third Bradford looked capable of snatching an unlikely victory.

After Leicester's keeper Ian Walker had saved from Jamie Lawrence, referee George Cain dismissed what looked a reasonable penalty claim after Claus Jorgensen appeared to be tripped by Gerry Taggart.

In a frantic finale, Gus Uhlenbeek should have done better after Forrest's cross found him unattended at the far post and Dickov was twice within inches of scoring his 20th goal of the season for Leicester, curling one shot just the wrong side of the post and forcing a fingertip save from Davison with another.

But it was the Bradford defender Wetherall who squandered the game's clearest opening. After finding space in a crowded penalty area late on, he stabbed the ball wide after another fine ball by Forrest found its way through to him.

Bradford City (4-4-2): Davison; Francis, Wetherall, Bower, Emanuel; Uhlenbeek, Atherton, Lawrence, Jorgensen; Gray, Forrest. Substitutes not used: Walsh (gk), Myers, Cadamarteri, Standing, Ekoku.

Leicester City (4-4-2): Walker; Impey, Elliott, Taggart, Rogers; Scowcroft, Izzet, Stewart, Benjamin (Summerbee, 57); Deane, Dickov. Substitutes not used: Murphy (gk), Stevenson, Heath, Jones.

Referee: G Cain (Merseyside).