DEREK Adams felt City handled the heat and tough conditions well as they made a winning return to Valley Parade.

The Bantams beat a makeshift Doncaster 2-0 in front of 1,006 home fans thanks to goals from Abo Eisa, who was very impressive, and Andy Cook.

With the temperature topping 28 degrees centigrade at kick-off, Adams was pleased with his team’s efforts in claiming a second pre-season victory.

Six of the line-up played 65 minutes and four more were taken off in the 76th minute.

Levi Sutton was the only one to go the distance after Gareth Evans was ruled out with a sickness bug. Elliot Watt’s thigh strain means he is likely to miss out until the Blackburn game next weekend.

Adams said: “I thought they coped with the circumstances really well. It was the first home game, the first time back on the pitch which was in magnificent condition, and to play in the heat it was today wasn’t easy.

“But we got 65 minutes out of them, which was probably more than any of them envisaged at the start of the game.

“Over the 90 minutes, we got 21 players a game which was important.

“I wanted them to get over the 60-minute mark psychologically from the point of view of coming back into the dressing room, then going back out and having to go again.

“You’ve got to work at that and I thought they coped well.

“It was difficult as well for the players that were sat in the stand. They might be dehydrated then getting on.

“That’s why I left it to the 65th minute. The players on the pitch understood the circumstances and I thought everyone did well.”

Doncaster fielded 11 trialists as well as some youth-team players after a positive Covid case in the squad meant several first-teamers had to stay away.

Adams added: “If the game had opened up a bit and become end-to-end, it would have suited us more.

“It didn’t happen in that way. It became slow and pedestrian at times but that’s the pre-season as both teams figure each other out.

“Any team that plays a long diagonal pass against us, we’re happy with. Any team that tries to play out from the goalkeeper, we’re happy with because we’re set up to exploit that – and did it a number of times over the afternoon.

“We probably should have scored more because we had some good chances.

“But to keep a clean sheet and score two goals over the 90 minutes is a good afternoon for us.”