Adam Clayton says Bantams up for the scrap at Carlisle

The Bantams are braced for part two of their play-off battle with Carlisle as they take a 1-0 lead to Cumbria in pursuit of Wembley.

Vastly-experienced midfielder Clayton, who made his senior debut on loan for Carlisle, is confident City can stand up to what’s thrown at them and will not wilt under the pressure.

“Because we play some nice football - I think we were fourth in the possession stats - it gets overlooked how much we can scrap and fight,” he said.

“You saw that when we went to Stevenage. There was very little football played but we beat the fighters in the division at their own game that day.

“It’s going to be one of them. We’re going to have to batten down the hatches and really scrap.

“I think Stubbsy (Sam Stubbs) and (Joe) Garner met each other’s elbows more times than they did on the ball!”

City have earned a reputation for their passing football but Clayton knows they can mix it.

“It does get overlooked how capable we are at fighting and scrapping. Cooky (Andy Cook) will give as good as anyone up front.

“Jamie (Walker) will go into tackles, he’s our number 10 who gets on the ball but he doesn’t shirk anything.

“We’ve got a really good set of men, in my opinion, and it will definitely be needed.”

Clayton joined Carlisle on loan from Manchester City as a 20-year-old in 2009 and played 28 games, including a cup final at Wembley.

Greg Abbott, now Carlisle’s head of recruitment, was manager and Clayton has a lot of time for the former City stalwart.

“I saw Greg the other night and we had a bit of banter about the game,” he said. “He’s a top character, one of the best in football.

“He started it all off for me back in the day at Carlisle. We had a good team - Richard Keogh played in that side, Scott Dobie was a very good striker.

“We got to the Johnstone’s Paint final and played at Wembley. Hopefully we won’t let that happen again for them!

“It was a good eye-opener. I used to take the centre halves down in a car school, in a (Audi) TT, you put two six foot three centre halves in the back of that!

“Greg wasn’t very happy because they were stiff as a board when we got there!

“It was a really good education, a first taste of you’ve got to pay your mortgage, pay your bills by winning games.

“You learn how serious it is. Nobody cares who you are, what you’ve done, why you’re there, if the ball’s there to be won, someone has to go and win it.”

Adam Clayton in action for Carlisle at Wembley (Image: Stuart Walker/News & Star)

Clayton knows exactly what to expect from his fourth encounter with Carlisle this season. A place in the final will not come easy.

“I think we earned the 1-0 win on Sunday. It was tough, both teams right at it trying to force their opponent into submission.

“The goal helped them settle down and give us something not to lose. I thought we were brilliant up to that point, on the front foot, aggressive.

“But then we had something to lose and didn’t go for the throat that maybe we could have a little bit more.

“There are probably six really good players in the middle of the pitch who like a tackle and know how to play the game.

“(Owen) Moxon got in (League Two) team of the year and has done really well.

“His deliveries on Sunday were really good and we managed to get our heads on stuff and not give clean headers. We’ll have to do that again.

“I really enjoyed the game the other night. It was two teams trying to win without being gung-ho.

“But it’s high-stakes football. We managed the game and got the result we wanted.

“There is nothing to be nervous about. We know we can do the job.”

Clayton also feels the expectation of Valley Parade’s huge audiences should help prepare City for a defining afternoon.

“Playing for Bradford City equips you well for moments like this,” he added. “People say there’s a lot of negatives about playing in front of a big crowd in the lower leagues but this is one of the positives.

“You are playing in big games every other week. You’re playing to a demanding set of supporters every week so those demands have been on you all season.

“I think it’s something we’ve really got our heads round recently and we’re just excited.”