It has been a long, dark road back from obscurity for Bradford City as they prepare to take on Swansea City in the League Cup final. Although the Yorkshire club continue to ply their trade in the fourth tier, the situation is far brighter than at any point since they were relegated from the Premier League in 2001.

 

1999/00 – Weeks after Bradford City had plucked survival from the gaping jaws of relegation thanks to a miraculous 1 – 0 win over Liverpool on the final day, manager Paul Jewell left the club to take charge of relegated Sheffield Wednesday. His assistant Chris Hutchings replaced him.

 

2000/01 - The rot had truly set in as the club finished rock bottom of the Premier League, 16 points adrift of safety. This was despite the fact that the Bantams splashed out on club record signing David Hopkin and paid €45,000 a week in wages to the likes of Benito Carbone in what the chairman Geoffrey Richmond described as six weeks of madness. Hutchings was dismissed after a dozen games and replaced by former Hearts boss Jim Jeffries. 

2001/02 - Although they kept hold of survival hero David Wetherall in their first season back in the second tier, they finished a lowly 15^th in what was then known as Division 1. By the end of that season the club’s debts amounted to approximately €15 million.

 

2002/03 - The club entered administration at the start of the season – the club’s centenary - as a result of the collapse of ITV digital and the legacy of those “six weeks of madness”. Richmond left the club to be replaced by new owners, while the playing staff was released. On the pitch however, Bradford managed to attain survival by finishing 19^th.

 

2003/04 - The respite did not last long despite the fact that Bradford started the season with former Manchester United and England captain Bryan Robson in charge. They were relegated after finishing 23^rd.

 

2004/05 – 2005/06 - Bradford consolidated their position in League One, finishing 11^th in two consecutive seasons. 

 

2006/07 - Disaster struck in May 2007 as the Bantams finished third from bottom in League One and were relegated to the fourth tier for the first time in 26 years, despite having their Premier League veterans Dean Windass and David Wetherall on the books.

 

2007/08 - Former Bradford captain Stuart McCall was appointed manager as the Bantams started life in the last division of the football league. But they got off to a poor start, losing eight of their first fourteen games. Bradford eventually turned their fortunes around and secured a respectable 10^th place by the end of that season. On the plus side, Valley Parade had the highest average attendance in the division.

 

2008/09 - Although McCall targeted promotion, Bradford could only finish one place higher than the previous season as the Bantams secured 9^th place, agonisingly missing out on a playoff place by two points. Captain Wetherall – who had also served as caretaker manager in 2007 - also announced his retirement at the end of the season to end his long association with the club.

 

2009/10 - Bradford finished 10 points off a playoff place in May 2010, as McCall was dismissed in February after the team lost six games from nine from December 1^st to February 6^th. Former England caretaker manager Peter Taylor was brought in to steady the ship and although they only lost two of their last ten games, a promotion push was too late in coming.

 

2010/11 - Exactly a year after taking over at Valley Parade, Taylor was dismissed in February 2011 as Bradford reached their nadir, finishing 18^th in League 2 just five points above the trapdoor to the Conference.

 

2011/12 - Taylor’s replacement Peter Jackson was in turn supplanted by current boss Phil Parkinson at the start of last season. If anything results were worse than the previous season as they finished 18^th again, six points above safety with a lower points total.

 

2012/13 - The clubs chairmen Mark Lawn and Julian Rhodes – who have been in charge of the club since it went into administration a decade ago – kept faith with Parkinson. And it has paid dividends as Bradford reached the League Cup final, shocking Aston Villa and Arsenal along the way. They also occupy a playoff place in League 2 as they look to return to the third tier for the first time in six seasons.