Rory McArdle has paid tribute to fitness coach Nick Allamby and believes City’s success can be largely attributed to the level of care afforded to their players.

Phil Parkinson’s men enjoyed an incredible campaign which saw them reach the Capital One Cup final at Wembley and culminated in them returning to the national stadium to achieve promotion.

According to McArdle, Allamby deserves massive credit for keeping the players in shape throughout a marathon campaign which saw the Bantams play 64 matches.

The Northern Ireland defender said: “Nick has been brilliant, right from pre-season, so everyone was feeling fit going into the campaign.

“He keeps a record of how many games the boys have played. When it comes to a training day, he might split us up. So the lads who have played a lot of games might not train as much one week. Those who have not played as much will train a little bit harder.

“If we have a midweek match that is a good distance away, we might stay over and have a swim at the hotel the next morning before heading home.

“It is a very professional set-up and no different to how a club is run in the Championship.”

McArdle added: “We usually get a couple of days off and I try and relax and maybe go for a walk.

“I’m constantly eating and having protein shakes, getting the calories back in to help my recovery for the next game.”

Meanwhile, it seems all but certain that City’s proposed end-of-season trip to Las Vegas will not materialise this summer due to their campaign ending so late following l Continued on Page 34 the recent play-off final win over Northampton.

Joint-chairman Mark Lawn had spoken of his intention to take Parkinson’s squad to Vegas after they overcame Aston Villa to reach the Capital One Cup final.

But with players now beginning to take holidays with families, any such jaunt is unlikely to materialise before the start of the new season, although it could still happen at a later date.

City are expected to confirm another pre-season trip to Ireland and also look set to play Guiseley in a friendly as they gear up for life in League One.

Lawn yesterday laughed off reports that Cardiff had made a bid for Nahki Wells and said there had been no interest whatsoever in any of City’s best players from rival clubs.