When the final whistle blew at Molineux, it was a moment which 3,000 Bradford folk will never forget.

The gut-wrenching tension of the previous 90 minutes was finally over and the unbelievable had happened - Bradford City were in the Premiership.

The scenes on the pitch and in the stands will live long in the memory as City fans savoured the moment which they had waited all their lives for.

It probably won't sink in until the fixture lists for next season are published, but City are to compete on a weekly basis with the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Leeds.

It has certainly been a long, long road to the success which Paul Jewell's side so gloriously earned on the final day of the season.

City have travelled just over 6,100 miles in their quest for promotion and there have been enough twists and turns to maintain the suspense until the very end.

There have been some dreadful lows with the defeats at Ipswich, Grimsby and Crystal Palace sticking longest in the memory due to the abject displays from the Bantams.

In contrast, the defeats at Huddersfield and Birmingham were heart-breaking due to City dominating both games to such an extent that if they had been boxing bouts, the referee would have stopped them.

However, the hallmark of any great side is to bounce back from such setbacks and that is certainly what City have done on countless occasions this term.

Skipper Stuart McCall's fighting spirit has been to the fore throughout the campaign and this has undeniably rubbed off on his team-mates.

The most pleasing aspect of the performances this season has been the way every player is willing to help out a team-mate. If one player lost possession, you could guarantee another would be close at hand to help out.

City's attacking play has also been a joy to watch. Paul Jewell, to his credit, has put the emphasis on his side attacking and this has paid off with an unprecedented number of goals.

Lee Mills has quite rightly taken the plaudits after a fine campaign in front of goal which saw him bag 25 strikes, but he is the first to admit the debt of gratitude he owes his team-mates.

City have played with two widemen for much of the campaign and Peter Beagrie deserves singling out for what must be one of the most consistent seasons of his career.

Prowling the left touchline, Beagrie can have no greater compliment than the fact his form meant former England international Lee Sharpe had to play out of position on the right after joining City on loan from Leeds.

It was fitting that promotion should be won in the West Midlands because it was in that region where City's season was transformed.

A 2-0 victory at high-flying West Brom in September surprised the majority of City fans, and when Gordon Watson struck with two late goals against Barnsley a week later the promotion bandwagon was well and truly back on the rails.

There have been many twists and turns since then, with dropped points at Port Vale, Palace and at home to Huddersfield and Oxford seemingly sounding the end of the club's automatic promotion hopes.

However, Jewell's resilient outfit have proved all the doubters wrong and are quite rightly basking in the glow of their achievements.

Well done City ... and roll on next season!

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