Academy Scholars on standby this weekend!
Bantams boss Phil Parkinson has hinted that some of the club’s second year scholars could be involved in Saturday’s F.A Cup third round tie at Championship side Millwall following a number of injury concerns around the City squad at present.
Irish duo Billy Clarke and Mark Yeates are both definitely ruled out of the trip to London following knee problems, while Andrew Davies (hamstring) and former Millwall man Filipe Morais (dead leg) are still rated as very much doubtful for the tie at The Den.
Parkinson has also revealed that a couple of his other players will need fitness checks as well ahead of the Millwall match.
With City potentially down on numbers then for their third round encounter with Ian Holloway’s Lions, Parkinson has decided to bring all of the club’s second year apprentices back into the training ground early from their Christmas break.
The group includes the likes of James King, James Pollard, Reece Webb-Foster, Sam Wright and Dylan Mottley-Henry, all of whom have featured on the bench for the first team at some point during this campaign.
Parkinson explained: “As sometimes happens after a hectic Christmas schedule, we have a fair few injury problems around at the moment.
“Clarkey and Yeatesy will definitely miss Saturday and it looks like we could be without Andrew Davies and Filipe Morais for the game as well.
“We have a couple of other bumps and knocks in the squad going into the game on top of this, so it means we have had to put the second years (scholars) in our plans for the weekend.
“There is no youth football over the Christmas period so we normally allow most of them time with their families, with only just two or three of them coming in per day to help with jobs around the training ground.
“Given the injuries we have in the camp at the moment, however, we have had to bring all the second years back in early to help us prepare for the (Millwall) game.”
Should injury rule Morais out of a return to one of his former sides, then Parkinson could look to give pacey apprentice winger Mottley-Henry his senior debut with the club.
The 17 year-old has been an unused substitute three times for the first team so far this season but has yet to enter the field.