Comeback king Peter Atherton today insisted he has seen the back of the injury jinx that has strangled his City career.

The former Sheffield Wednesday defender was thrown in for his first full game in over a year against Crystal Palace on Tuesday - and emerged with flying colours

It was a major step for Atherton following two knee operations last season when he was restricted to just an hour of league football.

He said: "It's been a long, long time and very difficult for me trying to get over hurdles. But this is the place I want to be and hopefully it's the start of better things to come."

If David Wetherall's hip injury is still troubling the skipper - and the indications are that he could be struggling - then boss Nicky Law will have his fingers crossed that Atherton has recovered enough to face Stoke on Saturday.

The centre-half added: "Hopefully David will be fit for the weekend because if we've got everybody fit, we've got a good squad here. A full squad will mean good competition for places and that can only benefit Bradford."

City again revealed their fighting spirit to follow up Sunday's stalemate with Wolves with another draw on Tuesday.

Atherton said: "The lads here are a great bunch who are all prepared to work for each other. We've been through a lot this summer.

"Obviously it's all been well publicised but we've stuck together through everything and hopefully it will now show dividends on the pitch."

Meanwhile, City reserves were beaten

1-0 at Manchester City last night. Shaun Goater tapped in after a mix-up between Robert Morgan and goalkeeper Aidan Davison.