Bradford City – Valley Parade?

The Intersonic Stadium?? Never heard of it, Valley Parade, well that`s a different matter. Why is it that history is lost with sponsorship, if it was a new ground then fair enough, but it isn`t. If I close my eyes I imagine a small spikey blue hedgehog jumping high for golden rings.
Intersonic Stadium it is for us then, now the only rhyming slang appropriate enough is Valley Parade- Raspberry Beret, here`s hoping that the stadium formerly known as such sees the Pools ‘purple` patch continued come 5pm on Saturday.

How to get there
By car – From the Fylde- M6 M60 then the M62. All routes – leave the 62 at J26 hit the M606 towards Bradford. At the end follow the signs for Ring Road EAST (keep in the middle or right hand lanes) under the tunnel on to Rooley Lane. (sign posted Leeds / Bradford airport). McD`s on your left over traffic lights at Asda then turn left on to Wakefield Rd. Middle lane over 2 roundabouts take a left just after Tesco`s then left again on to Station Rd take a left again on to Queens Rd. Up the hill 3rd set of lights left again on to Mannigham Lane, past garage then left to the ground. Street parking is available around the ground.

For the Virgin lovers amongst us, the nearest station is Bradford Forster Square, nearly a half hour walk to the ground though. Cost about £4 in a joey.

Where to drink
The Carlton pub is only a few minutes walk from the ground. It does allow in away fans, but the pub is quite a basic one. There are also a couple of hotels with bars, all about a ten minute walk away. They are the Park & Cartwright hotels. Just continue to walk on the main road by the ground away from the town centre and at the traffic lights where the entrance to the park is, turn right and you will see them in a row on your right. Also about a ten minute walk away is the ‘Corn Dolly’ on Bolton Road, but again more of a home fans pub.
Bradford wouldn`t be Bradford without a ruby – The Valley is on Manningham Lane, 5mins from the ground.

The Ground
The IS or VP holds over 25000. Long time since they filled it in the prem but still an impressive ground for the 3rd division. The TL Dallas stand will be our home. Situated behind a goal there is room for 1840 travelling fans and I expect a good turnout from the mighty. Try to get on the Upper tier, but again as with many older stands pillars may block some of the view.

OldBill & Stewards
Reports of trouble following the game at Bloomers may lead to an increased OB presence at Saturday`s game. Both clubs have a recognised ‘following ‘
and with Pool at Rotherham on the following Tuesday Yarkshire plod may use this opportunity for a bit of spotting. Bradford stewards are generally ok.

Fear Factor Rating – 5

Bradford have slumped dramatically over the last few months, with Division 4 fast becoming a real possibility if they can`t stop their slide. Pools away form is second to none. Undefeated against the top 5 picking up a possible 13 out of 15 points on our travels it`s against the lesser clubs where we so often seem to under perform. A good following and hopefully another 3pts should see us keep up with the pace and look to cement our place in the play off positions.

Onwards + Upwards