Bradford must ‘wait and see’ over wanted man Jack Payne, says David Hopkin - 7M sport

Bradford must ‘wait and see’ over wanted man Jack Payne, says David Hopkin



Posted Wednesday, January 02, 2019 by PA

Bradford must ‘wait and see’ over wanted man Jack Payne, says David Hopkin

David Hopkin hopes Bradford can keep influential loanee Jack Payne in the January transfer window despite interest from several clubs in signing him from Huddersfield on a permanent deal.

Payne, who was named man of the match for his part in the Bantams’ 3-0 home win over 10-man Accrington, is attracting interest from Sky Bet League One rivals Sunderland, Peterborough and Luton, but Hopkin said: “He wants to stay, we want him to stay.

“He has done really well for us, but he isn’t our player and we will have to wait to see what happens.”

Bradford’s revival gathered pace with their fourth win in five matches, during which they have scored 13 goals and conceded only one – in the 1-0 defeat at Sunderland on Boxing Day – and are one place above the bottom four on goal difference after being bottom of the table less than a month ago.

Lewis O’Brien, also on-loan from Huddersfield, put the home side in front after 20 minutes with a left-foot shot after Payne’s short corner found him unmarked on the edge of the penalty area.

O’Brien was then the victim of a rash challenge from Offrande Zanzala in the 26th minute which resulted in the 22-year-old striker being sent off. O’Brien also limped off with a cut on the shin that required two stitches.

Bradford made their extra man count on the half-hour when Adam Chicksen pulled the ball back for Eoin Doyle to hammer into the net from 15 yards and substitute Connor Wood put the result beyond doubt four minutes after the break with a superb strike from 20 yards after Payne laid the ball into his path.

Hopkin said: “We didn’t start the game as brightly as we have been doing because of the number of games we’ve had, but we scored three fantastic goals.

“Confidence comes from mental as well as physical preparation. We have good players who are stronger and fitter now and we need to make sure we keep winning games and pull away from the relegation area.”

Accrington manager John Coleman said: “We conceded a sloppy goal very much against the run of play. Bradford are on the crest of a wave and scoring goals and if you make mistakes you will be punished.

“Offrande Zanzala’s sending-off changed the game. I have no complaints about the decision. It is difficult for referees to come here because there are 16,000 fans baying for everything in sight, but players have got to rise above that.

“Offrande lost the ball and made a reckless challenge, but he is only young and he will learn from that. There isn’t a bad bone in his body. It was through sheer frustration.

“So, we went down to 10 men and conceded a second goal. We then changed the shape at half-time and conceded a third goal, but we kept going to the end, working hard for our supporters, and created two or three good chances.”

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