 Brought to you by DIS, keeping companies connected with cloud-based solutions. Come on, City! Stuart, good to chat with you again. If we can start with team news wise, how are you on the body's front going into tomorrow's game? Just exactly the same. I think we'll be like that for a wee while. Good news obviously that everyone's available from Saturday, but the four lads are still out and will be for the short-term future anyway. Can you at all put a timescale on any four of those at the moment, or is it still a little bit too early to be able to say? Yeah, I think Lee Novak will be the longest. He might run into a month maybe, but his grade was the worst grade when he got it scanned. Zell is back running, but that'll be another 70-10 days. Everthing had a little bit of a setback on Thursday or Friday, because we were hoping he was going to be available for Barrow, but he felt a little pain in his hamstring. Nothing major, but he just sets him back for another probably week, and Curtis is probably a week to two weeks. All about that, obviously, and Levi suspended. He's the only one that misses out, but the rest of the lads came through Saturday on a scale. How big a miss are those four used to attacking options when at the moment you're struggling to find the back of the net at the moment? Yeah, I think a couple of real key players for that. I think if you look at it, as you said, Lee Novak will have claims to be our top scorer at the end of the season. I'm sure he'll want to get his name onto that. But Gareth Evans, obviously, he's not been attacking midfielder, Curtis the striker, and Zele. It would be nice to have Zele to even come off the bench for half an hour with his individual ability, which we know he possesses, but since pre-season we've not been able to see it, unfortunately. We know creativity-wise and being clinical. We've not done that of late, but as you said, the four people that are out injured at the minute are attacking stroke creative players. Does that then mean you have to maybe put more responsibility and work more with the players available to you to try and push them forward and give them that confidence, shall we say, to go forward and get themselves that? I think about Callum Cook when I talk about things like that. Yeah, of course. I'm speaking of Cookie today. He could be on three or four goals. Pritch could have had a heart trick at Mansfield alone when you look at his three chances he's had to be in the box. But I also look back at the games that we've conceded. I think Wall Soul at home was there left back scored. Satted it was there left wing back that scored. Harrogate it was there sitting midfielder that scored against us. So goals for us has got to come throughout the team. We can't just rely on the strikers. We've got to be chipping in from obviously Woody scored at Mansfield and Pritch got a goal at Bolton, off the top of my head, Elliot scored with a free kick. But we need to be chipping in from all over the pitch, really. It's a growing narrative at the moment around the side, the lack of goals. Is that then, does that then put more pressure on the players that you do have fit and available? And does it weigh down in them somewhat? Do you feel? We don't want it to weigh down on. We've got to take the pressure off them. I think there's a few things. Listen, we know we've had a really bad poor week. There's no denying that naturally. Played three, lost three, not scored a goal. But like we've had a bad week, we've got to make sure now we're in aim for a good week. We can't change what the points that we've lost or the performance that we've put in. But we've got to be mindful that when we go out certainly tomorrow night and thereafter that we are positive in his mindset, which we will be, and look to go and score goals as much as we can. I think the key, when I look at the 13 games we've had this season, there's only three times we've been ahead in the games, which is obviously less than 25% naturally. And they were away at Mansfield, which we won away at Bolton, and at home. So we've only been, as I said, in the lead three times. Sorry, the other one was away at Forest Green, where we go down to nine men and lose a goal at 96 minutes. We've had seven home games and not scored first in any of them. So I think that's a main thing we need to change and rectify. Trying to go ahead first in games makes the balance of the game different naturally. We're not having to chase games and leave us self-open. We need a bit of control games, like we did at Mansfield when we scored the first goal. So that's a key component which we need to change without a doubt. But we know we're well aware we need to be more creative and certainly more clinical. Is that a psychological hurdle that you maybe need to overcome? We talk a lot about ability, we talk a lot about fitness, we talk a lot about commitment as well, but sometimes it can lie within the mental state of a player. Yeah, and longer it goes on, it's like if you've not won away from home, and longer that run goes, or different runs that you have in football. But we look back at the recent three games last week. Obviously we got beat against a good side at the top of the league at the moment, but we lose a goal in 15 seconds. Tuesday night at Bolton, it's a poor error, they don't have to work out. It's a poor mistake by us, which gives them a goal in the first 20 minutes. And Saturday, I can't really pinpoint it was an error individually, but the lads hit a decent shot into the bottom corner and we're going to go behind again. So we're mindful of that, but it's easy to talk about it. You've got to go out and change things and make it right. How do you then, with all that in mind, view tomorrow night's game playing bottom of the table south end? Anyone looking at the table would say, oh, it's an easy opportunity for you, but I imagine as a manager, you don't want to become too complacent about looking at the league table so early on. No, exactly. We're treating this game as if it's south end, it doesn't matter, we'll be treating it exactly the same manner. We've got to wear that we want to go and play. I'm confident in the players that we're putting out on the part tomorrow that we can go not only south end, but any team that will be playing. And we've got to believe in that and take a degree of confidence. Saturday won a football game, we knew with the elements how the game would be played as a football game, if you like. I think they had one good move in the first half, which culminated in Richard making a good save and then they won a corner from it and then they had a breakaway second half, a football I think that was up and down the country when I watched a lot of the games back. Bolton, there's no doubt, second half, we were dominant. And we've got to look to be that. We've got to be good in position in the ball, but then be creative when we go forward. How do you view south end as opponents, Stuart? It's hard when you're losing games, they're losing by the odd goal at times, they lost a late goal last week, just watched the game against Oldham, lost at home 2-1, sat there up against the strongport Vale side, but I'm not looking too much into them at all. We're fully focused on how we want to go about the game and how we want to play it, but we've got to be mindful that we want to get ahead in the game so we can control it a little bit more, but they've got some individual talent there, so the lads know which whatever team we play against, you know, you give them full respect, but you go and do your best you can be, and that's what we've got aim to do tomorrow. I realise it's very, very early on in the season still, but given the current form that you're in and given the current context of the league 2 table, is it a must win game tomorrow for you as a side? I think if we want to get back on track and obviously climb the table, it's a game we've got to be looking to win naturally. You don't manage your coach, you'll put a must win tag on anything, but I'd certainly take your point and I would certainly understand that the supporters will look at it like that naturally here, and so should we. We've got to start, as you said, we've had a poor week, we've got to make sure we flip it now and have a good week and then build on that. I've got a desire and determination to be here and to be successful in the long term capacity. Now, we've got to start getting results naturally, I'm not stupid, but it is early on in the season. There has been certain little things we can point to that's not been good enough, but there's also been certain little things that have gone maybe against us and we should have more points on the board. The league table at the moment, although it's not good, 100% it's not, and we want to do it far better, it's not a situation where we're miles away and out of it. Just like we've had three defeats on the bounce, I think as I said on Saturday, there's no reason why we can't go and put three wins on the bounce in the coming weeks and coming months. Just finally, Stuart, just away from matters on the pitch, we learnt later on Saturday evening after the national lockdown had been announced that football would continue during what was going to be another difficult period for many supporters and fans. Just how important is it to feel as someone who's been affiliated with the game for so long that football does continue in what is going to be another difficult period for the people of Bradford? Yeah, exactly. I think it is important for us to carry on obviously for the supporters. We know what everyone in the country is going through and you look to your football team to raise spirits. We've not done that of late so we've got to be mindful of that, that we want to start putting smiles back on people's faces or watching the game and we're frustrated and angry with life in general at the moment but adding to that is the poor results we've been getting of late so we look to change that. I still watched a couple of games yesterday watching Old Trafford with nobody in it. We want to keep the football going but it shows you how things quickly can change. It was only last month we were looking at getting fans back in the ground and maybe then getting 20% back in or 30%. You look abroad, Germany were getting people in but they've had to close down so it's a trying situation not only at the football club but obviously in general life for everyone with a closed down and shut down but for talking about us personally as a football club we've got to make sure we go out and put in performances that can at least give a little bit of light to the supporters that are watching. Do you think just on that point actually Stuart very quickly there's a greater role and responsibility on your shoulder you'll always go out there to represent the football club and put smiles on the fans faces but given just how difficult the climate is of life in general right now is there a greater role and responsibility of you as a football club to represent and also bring the smile on people's faces? Yes, I think so. I definitely think so. It's something we're looking at aiming to do. I understand the frustrations anger disappointment of recent results naturally but it's going to be a long term project that we want to build and be successful in and I genuinely believe we will be successful and get this club back to climbing climbing certainly this table but then looking higher but we need to get a full start turning these performances or these results into wins and make things look a little healthier but yes it's in anything isn't it? Hang on to something when we're going through there's lots of people going through different things in life at the moment and certainly sport and football in general can give people lift and that's what we've got to try to do. Stuart, thank you for your time. Good luck tomorrow. Cheers, thank you. Just following up from that point about the lockdown we heard on Sunday I think it was that there was a possibility that you might not be able to play the FA Cup tie on Saturday because no league size might not be able to play. Have you heard any more on that yet? I haven't peaked to be honest. I've not I did get a mention yesterday but I'm not sure it will go ahead well I'm sure, except I would imagine I spoke to Mark today, there's been nothing no mention of it so I've not heard any discussions over that so I would imagine it will go ahead. I'm returning to last Saturday I think that was your fourth red card so far in the season is that something you spoke to the players about they're disciplined? Yeah, we'll be reiterating it again tomorrow there's nobody is more distraught than Levi Sutton on Saturday over the weekend and today he's had a few private personal issues over the last week which has been tough for the kid but he came in on Saturday I asked him to get about the game get tackles in when I watched the tackle back there's no doubt in this climate it's a red card I've no arguments with that in my day it would have been a strong robust challenge that wins the ball stay on the ground level with the ball but I'm not complaining about it's a red card there's no doubt about that reckless you could say but as I said to answer your question the lads are well aware of the discipline I was saying to the staff today if it's something that goes an elbow if it's on something or kicks something or deliberately tries to do something then there's no excuses I'm asking Levi to go get some tackles in that midfield he's gone and won the ball but obviously the reckless nature he did it in merited the red card so as much as I spoke to him about it and the rest of the players we've got to be mindful it is a contact sport as well so it's to answer your question they are aware of the discipline that needs to be shown I love the issue of giving away soft goals and maybe not scoring as many as you should do do you think there's a danger that the players start trying too hard and then the errors start escalating well I think as we said again today just because everyone's desperate for this winning because you're looking at a team that are currently at the bottom of the table don't put that any more pressure on the players let them go out and play a relaxed game in front of goal certainly I want to play with composure tomorrow and quality I think the team we're putting out tomorrow will have that and then don't be trying too hard don't be thinking where every time you get the ball you've got to score you've got to do something if you're a striker just make sure when the chances come along be as clean as you can we've done a lot of finishing again today it doesn't replicate a match day situation but the more you practice hopefully the better you get Stuart, good luck tomorrow Stuart, just from me the team obviously one thing I've picked up obviously Reece has been getting quite a few games Reece Thornton, Finkles and Dawson played on Saturday and obviously I know it's kind of part forced your hand with sort of injuries and players missing are you excited to be giving you the chance and hoping that can continue as the season goes on I think obviously a couple of lads on Saturday won't play as the lone lads young boys but we've got Elliot there who's 20, the two lads who played on Saturday 18 another one of the young boys will be on the bench again tomorrow another different one I mean listen for me age is irrelevant you know 138 as you can be 18 but the lads have been getting game time have merited where they've trained and where they've played in games this season Brought to you by DIS keeping companies connected with cloud based solutions Come on City