CITY'S FA Cup match-winner Filipe Morais called their first-round victory a reward for the travelling army.

The Portuguese scored his first goal for the club as they came from behind to edge out Halifax 2-1 in a fierce derby tussle at The Shay.

Nearly 3,500 away fans were there to see Phil Parkinson's side eventually see off the Conference hosts and book their place in tonight's draw.

Morais said: "It was a lose-lose situation for Bradford. You win and people say 'you should do'; you lose and they say 'you're rubbish'.

"So it was a tricky one but we've come away in the next round – and it was nice to give something back to the fans. They've been patient and it was really nice to see their joy.

"It's hard for them to come out in numbers every game. It's a joy for me playing for this club. I've never played for a club with this sort of fans and I love every minute of it."

City recovered from the shock of Lois Maynard's early opener to hit back with two goals in three second-half minutes. Half-time substitute Billy Clarke transformed the game by setting up Jon Stead and then Morais to score.

Morais celebrated his goal by lifting up a T-shirt in memory of his uncle Julio Cruz, who died last week.

He said: "It was lovely to pay a tribute to him on TV as well. He played a big part in me growing up and becoming a footballer.

"He's left a son, daughter and wife and I know they were watching. I hope they appreciated it.

"I got booked but I'll have to take it on the chin. I'll probably get fined but family means more to me than money."

Parkinson was delighted to see Morais get off the mark and help City avoid a potential giant-killing with their first win in six games – particularly after the poor start.

The City boss said: "Fil's worked hard and has earned his place in the team with his professionalism at training and a couple of cameo performances as a sub. He's getting better and better.

"I came to Halifax a couple of Tuesdays ago and spoke to people behind the scenes. They were saying this was the biggest game since they'd come out of the league and they were baying for blood.

"It was a proper old-fashioned cup tie. You look at the Conference and it's not easy because of the physicality.

"That's what we expected and we weren't disappointed. The competitive element had to be there but the quality on the ball in the second half came from us."

City will pocket over £100,000 from yesterday and a prolonged cup run boosts their chances of clearing the current overspend.

Parkinson said: "This year we've already made quite a lot of money from the Leeds game.

"Now we've been on the telly again, got more prize money and (a share of) the gate receipts to go through, so I think the tally is building up as well as it has done for the past few years – apart from when we went to Wembley.

"The day of the third-round draw is arguably as exciting as any day in football. It's where everyone wants to be and we're one step away from that."

The draw for round two is live on BBC2 at 7pm.

Halifax v City picture gallery