MICHAEL Collins believes today’s “men against boys” 7-2 loss at Harrogate must act as a reality check for City’s youngsters.

An inexperienced Bantams line-up were thrashed by the National League new boys, who romped into a 6-0 lead by half-time.

Collins, who named an under-23s side on the Wetherby Road artificial surface, felt the attitude was all wrong during that 45-minute hammering.

He said: “We had a very young team out there but you saw the realities of football.

“Some of the young lads may have looked at playing a Conference side and thinking ‘we’re Bradford City and we’re League One’, and quickly you realise that’s not how it works.

“Unless you’re prepared to show the commitment levels and dedication required, you’ll quickly find yourself on the outside staring in.

“Credit to Harrogate, I thought they were very professional and taught our lads a lesson first half. For me it was the mentality.

“They are people scrapping hard to pay mortgages and to support their families.

“We’ve got a few young lads in there who may think this will last forever. It was a good reality check for them that it doesn’t.

“If they don’t apply themselves properly and come up to the levels required with regards to the dedication of a professional footballer, they’ll quickly find themselves on the outside staring in.”

Tom Clare scored twice in the second half but Harrogate, who were at full strength, had done the damage long before.

Collins added: “Naturally the lads will be disappointed with the scoreline and I’m sure a few people who weren’t at the game will be a little bit surprised looking at it.

“It doesn’t faze me. Lessons were learned today for those young lads.

“As difficult as it is to take at the moment, this will stand them in good stead further down the line.

“It separated the men from the boys and today quite a lot of our squad showed exactly what they were, young lads learning their trade.”

Danny Devine, who captained the team, had to go off in the first half with a knock on his knee.