Bradford City 1, Plymouth Argyle 1

Nobody seemed quite sure whether to celebrate or commiserate at the final whistle, such was the mix of emotions during a fraught finale.

With four minutes remaining, City stood on the brink of a catastrophic defeat. Kyel Reid then crossed low from the left flank and James Hanson, with one swish of his left foot, sent the ball crashing into the roof of the net in the blink of an eye.

Over 9,500 Bradfordians felt blood course through their veins. Relief was everywhere.

It should have turned to ecstasy moments later – not once but twice. Unfortunately, it did not.

First skipper Michael Flynn blazed over the crossbar from another Reid cross, before Ricky Ravenhill spurned an even better opportunity in added time.

The ball dropped to him inside the box and, unmarked, he looked a decent bet to rifle it home. Instead, his low shot fizzed wide of the left-hand post.

Ravenhill cursed himself and put his head in his hands. He was not the only one.

The on-loan midfielder then trundled back towards his own half. He reached the halfway line and again threw his head in his hands, the potential ramifications of the miss having dawned on him. Moments later, the final whistle sounded.

It would be harsh to point the finger too strongly at Flynn and Ravenhill for failing to even hit the target. But on such incidents can a football club’s fate ultimately be decided.

Those late misses from the returning midfield duo left Phil Parkinson’s men without a victory on home soil in the league since October. It left them with just three wins from 20 League Two outings and with the relegation places still in sharp focus.

With a trip to second-placed Southend next up on Friday, City’s predicament remains a cause for great concern.

Those with half-full glasses will point to the character that they showed in digging themselves out of a very ugly hole and salvaging a precious point.

Yes, they showed spirit to rouse themselves and there was much to admire in that late rally. But the fact was that chances to bury Plymouth came and were spurned.

Parkinson admitted: “We had two or three great chances to win it and the least you’ve got to do is make the goalkeeper work.

“Ricky’s was a great chance – a great chance. You hit that low like he did and you put it on target, then it hits the back of the net.

“I’m very disappointed we didn’t win it because we went into the game believing that we could. It’s two points dropped really, because during the course of the game we had some fantastic chances.

“But after going a goal down, we could have gone one of two ways. The way that we went pleased me as we responded well and showed a lot of character to come back in the game.”

That cannot be denied. But how Parkinson must have wished his men could have performed for 90 minutes as they did in the final few. Not for the first time this season, City began sluggishly.

Plymouth, facing the Bantams for the first time since 1995, lie second from bottom, three points below their hosts. But with their financial woes behind them, and boasting players of the ilk of Darren Purse, Simon Walton and Nick Chadwick, it is hard to see them hanging around the drop zone for too long.

They initially forced City onto the back foot, their neat passing encouraging their 521-strong contingent from Devon cause for optimism.

The home side – minus Ross Hannah, who pulled out of the side after feeling a hamstring tighten up during the warm-up – gradually warmed to their task and should have led inside the tenth minute.

Flynn whipped in a corner from the left flank, only for Luke Oliver and Marcel Seip to fail to connect from the edge of the six-yard box.

Four minutes later, Andrew Davies flighted a superb pass behind the Argyle defence to Hanson, whose first touch betrayed him.

Moments later a corner from Reid on the opposite flank was met with a firm header by Oliver but Plymouth cleared the danger.

Although the visitors looked dangerous on the counter-attack, City continued to build and began to dominate possession, with Reid and Jack Compton offering pace and creativity on the flanks.

They went agonisingly close in the 20th minute when Compton showed delightful skill to cut infield and curl a fine left-foot shot which Jake Cole did well to parry.

It was easily the clearest chance for either side – and moments later Craig Fagan headed a free-kick inches over Cole’s crossbar.

City continued to pin Plymouth inside their own half and Flynn’s long throw-in was flicked on by Hanson but Fagan could not connect at the far post.

Shortly before the half-hour mark, Compton again showed fine skill to outfox the Argyle defence and whip in a dangerous cross which was headed clear.

Chances remained scarce thereafter until the stroke of half-time, when Purse produced an outstanding clearance to deny City.

Compton clipped in a teasing cross from the right and Flynn arrived to stick out a foot to divert it goalwards with Cole beaten, the ball seemingly destined to cross the line until Purse acrobatically hacked it clear.

Purse, having picked up an earlier knock, was replaced at half-time by Curtis Nelson and, within three minutes of the restart, Plymouth conjured their first clear-cut chance.

Craig Sutherland’s deft lay-off sent Chadwick free inside the 18-yard box and his low, first-time shot was superbly parried by Jon McLaughlin.

Shortly before the hour mark, Argyle took the lead when Chadwick’s left-footed strike from 20 yards was deflected out for a corner, which Will Atkinson delivered from the left flank.

The ball found its way to Walton at the far post and he took a touch before drilling in a low, right-foot shot which Sutherland diverted home from close range. Disaster beckoned for City but there was much to be admired in their response.

In he 64th minute, Fagan found space inside the 18-yard box but his low, left-foot shot was repelled by Durrell Berry’s fine block.

Hanson’s far-post header from Compton’s cross was then saved by Cole, before Nahki Wells replaced Fagan with 22 minutes remaining.

With four minutes left, Hanson hit his sixth goal of the season from Reid’s pass with a brilliant first-time shot which gave Cole no chance.

Flynn then blazed over – and Argyle were reduced to ten men when Onismor Bhasera picked up his second booking – before that gilt-edged chance fell to Ravenhill, who could only drag a right-foot shot wide.

Parkinson declared: “We’re going to roll ourselves up as a staff and a group of players and make sure we win more games than we lost between now and the end of the season.”

Attendance: 10,143