BLUES boss Joe Royle was happy enough to take the three points and for his team to gain their first clean sheet, but was not happy with the overall performance, especially from his strikers.

By Derek Davis

BLUES boss Joe Royle was happy enough to take the three points and for his team to gain their first clean sheet, but was not happy with the overall performance, especially from his strikers.

Royle said: "We were angry because we made hard work of it. If we had got a second goal we could have controlled the game, controlled the ball and played the game out.

"Shefki and Pablo have had three or four chances each, including a penalty. Georges has kept one out of the net which I can't understand how when he should have scored from a metre out.

"If it had been seven when we missed the penalty Bradford could not have complained.

"We have done it the wrong way round but we have hung on and handled the pressure well because we have size about us now.

"We are talking about a 1-0 hammering. Until we missed the penalty they had not got near us.

"We missed six open goals, although the keeper has made three excellent saves.

"The official then sees the game differently to the rest of us and we are under pressure.

"We defended well for a change but we can't go on missing the chances we have again."

Alan Mahon scored the all-important goal and was superb throughout, but Royle deemed on-loan Charlton midfielder Chris Bart-Williams as the main influence.

He said: "The three loan signings have given us something and been tremendous for us. Alan Mahon has given us a goal, Shefki has worked relentlessly and for me Bart-Williams was arguably man of the match. We defended properly when we needed to. We can be better, we can keep the ball, we can pass the ball – we just need to find that cutting edge.

"If it had gone against us it would have been the most ridiculous result of the season."

Royle was happy with his defence which kept City at bay, leaving Kelvin Davis with little to do.

He said: "It was great to keep a clean sheet and Kelvin has not had too much to do.

"There was pressure from balls coming in and Fabian has made a tackle that has saved two points."

It was important the Dutchman got it right as his challenge on Tom Kearney was in front of the Bradford Kop.

Royle admitted: " That was worrying me because they were roaring before he made the tackle."

The win moved Town up to ninth after being bottom of the table at the beginning of September Royle insisited: "I was never panicking. There were people telling me we were relegation fodder, but we were never that."