Bantams boss Mark Hughes chasing win to change the mood

Hughes and the players copped an angry reaction from a section of the Valley Parade crowd at the end of the Harrogate draw.

They head for south Wales for tomorrow’s tricky clash at Newport needing to restore the faith with some supporters having won just twice in the first eight games.

Owner Stefan Rupp was at City last weekend but Hughes denied there had been any discussions with the club hierarchy other than the “normal ones we have during the week”.

Hughes played down the level of dissatisfaction at the final whistle.

“I thought it was merited up to a point because the expectation was that we were going to win,” he said.

“The reality was we didn’t, we drew, but was it right through the stadium? I didn’t hear that, I didn’t see that.

“You’ll get some people who are disappointed with the result and sometimes that changes their view in terms of what they’ve actually seen.

READ MORE: Key City duo "highly doubtful" for Newport trip

“We have a huge demand and huge expectation on us to win every game.

“Sometimes we don’t achieve that and, as a consequence, people are disappointed. I’ve always said that.

“Was it at a level that I was really aware of? No, not really.

“It was there but the only way you make it go away is by winning games and that’s what we’ll attempt to do at the weekend.”

City currently sit 17th on 10 points - three off Crewe in the last play-off spot and three ahead of Forest Green four places below.

“We haven’t had a great start,” added Hughes. “The expectation was maybe after 10-15 games that we’d be top of the league - we could still be.

“At the minute we’ve played eight games. We haven’t been beaten for five games.

“We’ve had a number of draws back-to-back. Is it trending in the wrong direction? No, not really in terms of performances and results.

“We’ve just got to start winning games. We’ve won two, drawn four and lost two - so the majority of games we’ve played up to this point, we haven’t been beaten.

“We’ve just got to turn those into winning performances and results. If we do that, then we’ll be fine.”

Andy Cook and Alex Pattison have been big misses and Hughes rated them “highly doubtful” to feature at Rodney Parade - where Newport are unbeaten this season.

Cook has been out for the last four games and Pattison went off in the Carabao Cup tie at Wrexham.

The City boss said: “It doesn’t help but if I highlight them, people think I’m making excuses. I’m not going to do that.

“It is what it is and we’ve got good enough players to certainly have won the last two home games.

Alex Pattison has been a key absentee in recent games (Image: Tom Pearson)

“Apart from the first half against Grimsby when we were really poor, we had a response in the second and were very good. We got clapped off the pitch.

“At the weekend, maybe for whatever reason, I just sensed in the lead-up to the game that people were more ready to criticise.

“That’s fine but the reality is we haven’t won a game that on paper we should have won.

“I can show you the stats that we totally dominated the game. But we didn’t win it and have to take it on the chin with any criticism that comes our way.

“It won’t stop us making sure we go full tilt against a good Newport side that will test us - but not one that we should be afraid of.

“We’re eight games in, as I keep saying. If we’re still talking in the same vein eight more games down the road, then it’s a different conversation.

“But at the moment it’s a case of just making sure we get more wins on the board. Do that and we can start to build this season.

“A couple of wins back to back changes the narrative that’s maybe a little bit around us at the moment."