Mark Lawn wants to give the Bradford End back to City fans - but safety reasons may prevent him from doing it.

The joint chairman admits he hates seeing away fans sat behind the goal in the TL Dallas Stand and has made initial inquiries with safety officials this week about using it for home supporters.

With many League Two clubs not expected to bring huge numbers this season, it has been suggested that they could be accommodated in the Midland Road stand.

But Lawn said: "I don't want to get people's hopes up at this stage as I don't know the feasibility. There are quite a few teams in the league whose fans have a bit of a reputation so I need to speak to the police about it and also find out how much it would cost us. The safety of the crowd is first and foremost."

The City chief believes having away fans behind the goal is giving visiting teams an advantage.

He said: "How many times with a few minutes to go have we seen away sides get a corner and have the ball sucked into the net by their fans?"

The TL Dallas stand was given over to home fans against Crewe as a one-off experiment last season.

Only a small number of City fans took the offer up but there was a notable improvement in the atmosphere at the ground.

The idea may only prove workable for low-key games but Lawn admitted: "It's in the big games that you really want Bradford fans in that end because that's when they're needed as the 12th man."

Lawn heads off on a two-week trip to America today but said he would look into the matter further on his return.

Meanwhile, City's game at Morecambe on October 13 has been brought forward to Friday, October 12 to avoid clashing with televised international matches. The match at Christie Park will kick off at 7.45pm.

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