MARK Bower will be aiming to stop his former striker Frank Mulhern in Bradford (Park Avenue)’s Boxing Day derby at home to Farsley Celtic.

If he and his team do so, it will give Avenue a great chance to put some distance between themselves and their National League North relegation rivals.

But Bower knows they will be facing a much-changed player from the youngster that helped fire Bradford to the play-offs in the 2017/18 season.

He said: “Frank’s better than he was when he was here five years ago.

“He’s a good player who works hard and he was key to Stockport’s promotion-winning side the season after he came on loan from them to us.

“Frank’s played at a higher level since leaving us, but I think he’s found a place and a manager he’s comfortable with at Farsley.

“He’s scored some vital goals for them this season and his partnership up front with Jimmy Spencer is a dangerous one.

“We certainly know the qualities Frank possesses.”

Avenue could go as many as seven points clear of the drop with a win at Horsfall next Monday, but defeat to the third-bottom Celts would drag them back into the relegation mire.

Bower said: “It’s just about the next game, even though taking points off Farsley would open up a real gap between the pair of us.

“We just want the three points, because if we don’t keep winning like we have been, we’ll soon be back in that bottom four,

“We lost to Farsley in the FA Trophy last month and should have done better on the day, so we do have a point to prove, but they’ve hit a bit of form themselves.

“They’ve beaten good sides likes Chester and King’s Lynn recently, and they have good players, more of whom are starting to get fit.

“If that continues, they can move themselves away from danger, so we know that Boxing Day and New Year’s Day double header against them will be tough.”

Bower hopes to have a fully-fit squad to choose from for both games, with goalkeeper George Sykes-Kenworthy likely to be the first name on the teamsheet.

But while his understudy Liam Hall can expect to sit on the sidelines, the teen is still on cloud nine, having progressed from the academy to sign a first-team contract earlier this week.

Bower said: “Liam and George both respect and like (goalkeeping coach) Danny King and have done a good job under him.

“Liam has learned a lot from George too, and he comes to every game regardless of whether he’s on the bench or not.

“He’s still got lots to learn but he has the potential to play at a really good level.

“Liam and the other young lads did a really good job in our West Riding County Cup defeat to Brighouse on penalties last month, and it’s a good sign that we’re getting players from the academy regularly involved.”

No academy boys are likely to play against Farsley, but they should be able to watch the game from the sofa, with the National League’s new streaming service launching on Boxing Day.

Bower said: “Streaming should be a good thing for us.

“We have a fanbase dotted around the country and the world because of our history, and being able to watch our games from afar should allow some of those supporters to stay in touch with the club.

“Football is changing and you have to move with the times like this, so I hope the service is successful.”