Summer blues

On one day, Bradford City snapped up one young, precocious talent but missed out on an experienced midfielder who refused to take a medical. It just about encapsulates our summer.

The Scottish youth international is Scott Brown, a player described by manager Peter Jackson as the best 16-year-old he's ever seen. The second player is believed to be Tommy Miller, who now appears destined for Huddersfield Town.

But the bitter-sweet news has one been coming through all summer. We've staved off the threat of leaving behind our Valley Parade home, with Julian Rhodes and Mark Lawn instead taking further hold of the club but on the flip side seen a proposed takeover turn down - some have welcomed the possible investment, some are a little more cautious of the news.

We've appointed a new manager, a club hero who many fans are glad to see; but on the flip-side his form was poor at the end of last season and he wasn't everyone's first choice. Jackson, though, to his credit, has brought in a wealth of men to add muscle to the coaching set-up and we have a new chief scout, with all the passion, hunger and contacts necessary.

We've also unveiled a new kit. A return to claret and amber, though one with flashed stripes; but on the flip-side a bright, gaudy pink away kit.

But in the end, what will count is the talent on the pitch. To that means, our stand-out signing is Guy Branston; a tough, experienced centre back with a pedigree at our level, just the sort of man we need to build a spine around and one who should hopefully bring on Steve Williams who is still learning the game. Then of course, there's the undoubted goal-getting talent of Ross Hannah. And eventually we landed Scottish pair Chris Mitchell and Mark Stewart. Brown made it a triumvirate this week.

But for every positive, there's been a set back. One of the best goalkeepers in the Conference, Sam Russell, reputedly turned down a two-year deal to stay with current club Darlington but on a shorter deal. Gary Jones, another midfielder with form at our level and above, also declined to move away from his current club. Then there was the strike duo of Ashley Grimes and Clayton Donaldson who opted for higher league football. The latter was particularly heart-wrenching. We'd paid for his family to have a box at the final game of the season. What they saw was Donaldson tearing us apart. Perhaps it was that frailty which put him off his hometown club, but in the end all he could manage to say was he believed League Two was beneath him. Miller makes it five.

It's difficult to remember a summer where we've missed out on so many signings. But big signings too. Those five would have ensured a very strong spine to our team and one you'd believe in. That said, Stuart McCall set out his transfer path three years ago, landed the lot, then we missed out in the final run-in. Instead we'll have to judge Jackson's squad when it runs out in August, rather than the one which we've lost out on in July.

Peter Jackson's Bradford army

Now that Bradford City's future at Valley Parade has been secured, it's time for the second worst secret in football to be unveiled - and the club to announce Peter Jackson as the new permanent successor to Peter Taylor.

This blog has maintained its support for John Coleman, who even now is still being rumoured to be the next man in the Valley Parade hotseat. But it seems certain that City will appoint Jackson on a permanent basis.

Jackson has an indifferent pedigree and his record last season was worse than that of his predecessor Peter Taylor as the club suffered its worst league season since the Sixties. Nevertheless, now that Jackson has been appointed, it's time for everyone at the club to finally pull in the same direction and strive for a longer-term future.

The details of his contract have yet to be announced, but when the club have long-term deals in place with the likes of James Hanson, Steve Williams, Jon McLaughlin, handing out similar terms to Ross Hannah and are trying their best to give more secure futures to other targets, such as that rumoured to be given to Sam Russell at Darlington, playing-wise that is starting to take place.

Stuart McCall was given time though not without its ups and downs, and even he was eventually hamstrung because the club did not budget long-term. Taylor himself was given short shrift and out after just a year. Now is the time for City must lay some solid foundations to avoid a repeat of this summer and no longer make knee-jerk reactions. Give Jackson time and give him the tools to do the job, and importantly club, justice.

Whatever any of us think of Jackson, the past is the past. City must now look to the future properly otherwise there may not be one.

Return of the buzz

No Bradford City fan could fail to be swept up in the enthusiasm which came with the appointment of Stuart McCall in 2007. While the optimism waned, it never vanished under City's most loved son until his final few days and even then it was with more than a tinge of sadness. The same cannot be said for his successor, Peter Taylor. He was supposedly the perfect appointment with a raft of promotions under his belt. But City never got going under Taylor, and the inconsistent results were matched by the turgid football on offer. Comparisons to John Docherty were even thrown in his direction.

So Julian Rhodes and Mark Lawn were always going to have a difficult job in finding a successor. While interviews continue to name a permanent manager, the man filling in is doing his very best to keep it. Peter Jackson has - in just two games - brought the buzz back to Valley Parade. He gave an all-action performance himself on Tuesday, gave the fans a win over a Ronnie Moore side and has been making all the right noises in the press.

Jackson might not be the most perfect of appointments and his credentials will come under scrutiny both in the board room and among fans. So, it's refreshing that he has brought in an experienced and respected number two in Colin Cooper. It's definitely an intriguing selection and shows some more long-term thinking than the initial interim appointment.

Jackson now has more time to put his name on the manager's door full-time with "two or three" more games starting with Morecambe today. Whatever Jackson's strengths as manager are and whatever the thoughts of the fans on his appointment are, at least he has brought some much needed buzz back to our club.

Squaring the circle

What's in a football formation? Hours of discussion have been devoted on how to square the circle, or as Jonathan Wilson put it how to Invert the Pyramid, across the world. We all have our preferred formations and countries have very different philosophies on football. But England is firmly entrenched in a 4-4-2 formation.

But when Peter Taylor came in, he tinkered hugely with the personnel and at times with the formation. Yes, he played 4-4-2, but his firm belief came from 4-3-3 and 4-5-1. It might have worked with him at other clubs before, but it never worked at City. Even to the end he stuck with his 4-3-3 and it was only at half-time in that captivating finale against Stockport County that he reverted to a formation that footballers up and down this country know, love and understand (okay, it was really a 3-4-3 after Stockport were reduced to nine men that we got the real joy) and he played a final get out of jail card.

So today, what will Peter Jackson play today at Gillingham? And should City be looking full-time for a manager who will play 4-4-2? Maybe Taylor was hamstrung by injuries, but the experience he had from the players at his dispensation and the reaction of the crowd suggests 4-4-2 is the way forward. Perhaps, it shouldn't really matter as long as the club gets results, but it seems City fans and players are more comfortable with a 4-4-2.

Coleman all but ruled out

A week after John Coleman was first linked with being Peter Taylor's successor, it seems his chances have been thwarted even without an interview. Accrington gave Bradford City permission to speak to their long-term boss but before those talks were held, a lack of financial clout at Valley Parade has prevented any deal.

This blog has already waxed lyrical about the job Coleman has done at Accrington Stanley. When Coleman took over the reigns at the Crown Ground, City were a Premier League club and Accrington a massive six divisions below. Fast forward 12 years and we're now opponents and have been for the previous two seasons. And it's not as if Coleman hasn't had success against us either.

Coleman would have been a great choice but that recent long-term contract he signed at Accrington may have killed off any chance we have of seeing just whether Coleman could have turned round another club's fortunes. And the news comes on the back of similar noises from former City favourite Greg Abbott, who says he is not tempted by the job. Again, it's a shame - Abbott has done a decent job at Carlisle United - but less of a surprise.

Is this all a result of more prudent times at Valley Parade? Do we have that little money to tempt a new manager? And should we just turn our attention to out-of-work managers?

That would all raise the outlook for Peter Jackson, who will lead City out for the first time as manager on Saturday against Gillingham - more than 20 years after he last played for the club. Jackson has all the passion in the world and passion for the club, and has been making the right noises - but there are also concerns about his past and inconsistent performances as manager elsewhere.

Jackson however is in the box seat. That is a unique position which the club is also in. Succeed and his chances are boosted; fail and we'll probably look elsewhere.

A hero returns. A hero's return?

More than 30 years after first walking into Valley Parade, Peter Jackson spent his first day as manager of Bradford City today - a job he was probably always destined for. Jackson may be only here for a brief, interim period, but while he is in the hot-seat, he will remain favourite and be "playing for keeps".

An awful lot has happened and been said since Jackson first signed for City as a teenager in the 1970s. Jackson will certainly divide popular opinion among the fans and like any candidate for the Valley Parade hotseat, his attributes will be hotly debated. But by going straight on the record to say today is a huge honour for him, Jackson has neatly summed himself up.

As a superb central defender, Jackson became the club's youngest captain and leader of a very young team following City's financial maelstrom of 1983. He had already experienced one promotion and became an even more central character of the first period of Bantam Progressivism when he led his side to the Third Division title in 1985. Victory was overshadowed by disaster of the Valley Parade fire, but Jackson proved what a strong, mature head he had, by leading the club through a dark period, not just on the pitch, but so admirably off it. He left to join Newcastle United but returned for a two-year spell at the end of the 80s.

Joining Huddersfield and then going on to match City's arch-rivals twice tarnished his reputation among some of the City faithful, particularly for his reactions on derby day and many a choice word. But if the players can show just a fraction of his passion and react in the same way his own teammates did in his first spell at Valley Parade, then he will prove to be a successful manager.

Jackson won't tick all the boxes, there will be better candidates in a lot of attributes, and many fans will have other choices, but the players will have the honour of being managed by a true club legend. Of course, we have been here before ...

Good luck Jacko, you may well need it.