Bradford City League Cup journey overtaken as my favourite

A remarkable 4-3 aggregate win against a team containing the likes of Given, Ron Vlaar and Christian Benteke was the latest chapter in the Bantams’ run to Wembley, which had also seen them knock out two other top-flight sides in Wigan Athletic and Arsenal.

James Hanson (left) celebrates his famous goal at Villa Park. Picture: David Davies/PA Wire.

Like most football fans, I could not help but be invested in this League Two team’s extraordinary journey, as they became the first side from England’s fourth tier to reach a major domestic final in 51 years.

By and large, given its rich and extraordinary history, I have always been more inclined to care about the FA Cup, with the Bantams’ extraordinary 4-2 win at incumbent Premier League champions Chelsea one of several amazing upsets to have captured my imagination down the years.

But the 2012/13 season was different, as City’s underdog story went far beyond just a single tie.

After the thrill of willing this League Two team on, who I remembered from my first season of watching the Premier League in 1999/2000, nothing else could quite compare.

Until now.

Part of the reason I’ve struggled to rouse myself for the League Cup in years gone by, City’s run to the final excepted, is the annual pathetic performance from my side, Newcastle United, in the competition.

The odd rubbish quarter-final defeat aside, for 0-4 against Tottenham Hotspur in 2014/15, see 0-1 against a weakened Brentford side in 2020/21, there has been nothing to shout about for us Magpies.

But, with the new ownership, over which of course I have ethical concerns, comes hope, on the field at least.

Newcastle are currently third in the Premier League, having not conceded in six top-flight matches, and after Tuesday night’s win over Southampton, with former Newcastle keeper Given ironically a pundit on Sky Sports for the game, they look to have one foot in this year’s League Cup final.

Nick Pope applauds the Newcastle fans after keeping a clean sheet at Arsenal earlier this month. (Image: Adam Davy/PA Wire.)

It was a nervy watch at the pub, as Joe Willock, Sean Longstaff and Joelinton all blew great chances, but the latter made up for that with a late winner in a 1-0 victory, turning the ball home from close range after great work from Toon substitute Alexander Isak.

A lot of people seem to think our main aim should be the top four and Champions League qualification.

I think my reaction to last night’s winner, lots of over-excited shouting, tells you exactly where my priorities lie.

We have not won a domestic cup since 1955, and we are still League Cup virgins, our best effort seeing us lose the final 2-1 to Manchester City in 1976.

But we will be back for our second showpiece if we can just avoid defeat at St James’ Park next Tuesday, in a game I am hoping to attend.

I was born in November 1994, so all of my earliest memories are of the 1999/2000 season, like my disbelief at us beating Sheffield Wednesday 8-0 in Sir Bobby Robson’s first home game in charge, my devastation at us losing the FA Cup semi-final 2-1 to Chelsea, and my tantrum at JJB Sports when I had to get ‘Dyer 7’ on the back of my first-ever replica top because there was no letter ‘s’ available in the shop for them to put ‘Shearer 9’ on there.

Alan Shearer celebrates one of his FIVE goals in Newcastle's 8-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday in September 1999. (Image: Mike Urwin/Newsquest.)

Bizarrely, I also have a strong memory of us beating the Bantams 2-0 in April 2000, with goals from Shearer and the late Gary Speed.

This is most likely because it taps into one of my core memories as a child, Saturday afternoons shopping in Middlesbrough with my parents and checking the rolling Teletext on the TVs in Dixons.

Speed scored early, but five-year-old me spent the afternoon frantically checking the score and it not changing, before Shearer wrapped the win up with a minute to go.

I have to confess I largely lost touch with the Bantams’ progress once they were relegated in 2001, though I was of course aware of their depressing drop down the divisions.

But that 2012/13 League Cup run put them back on my radar, and after being so disappointed to see them lose the final 5-0 to Swansea City at Wembley, I was surprisingly desperate for them to beat Northampton Town in the League Two play-off final that season.

Fortunately, they did, blowing the Cobblers away in the first half to win 3-0, and I enjoyed their FA Cup journey in 2014/15 too, probably the win over Sunderland even more than the Chelsea one for obvious reasons.

Rory McArdle celebrates with the League Two play-off final trophy in 2012/13 in front of scores of Bantams fans in Bradford. (Image: Tom Smith/Newsquest.)

In truth, I’ve never loved any League Cup run as much as that Bantams fairytale in 2012/13.

But a decade on, I’m sorry to say City fans, I might finally have a new favourite.