In-form Bradford City have a great incentive to go four points clear in second place when they meet Crystal Palace in tonight's re-arranged match at Valley Parade.

The match, which was abandoned at half time with the sides level at 1-1 when originally played in October, is the game City have in hand over all but one of their top six rivals and manager Paul Jewell is determined to make it count.

City have taken 19 points from their last 21 to soar into second place and Jewell is looking for his players to continue that great run.

Three points against Palace, now managed by Steve Coppell following the resignation last week of Terry Venables, would not only cut Sunderland's lead at the top to seven points but strengthen City's top six place by giving them a seven point cushion over seventh placed Watford.

But the City manager warned his players to beware of a backlash following Palace's off-the field problems.

"Palace came back from 2-0 down to draw against Stockport on Saturday and they'll have had a lift from that.

"There's been a lot of ballyhoo about the place, but the players just want to play and tonight, it's 11 against 11.

"We showed great concentration and desire in our 4-1 over Crewe on Saturday in a match that could have been a banana skin.

"We respect Palace and they have got some fine players, but we don't fear them. If our players give 100 per cent as they have been doing, I can't ask for anything more from them. But I do know that if we drop below that we will find ourselves in trouble.

"I am delighted with our progress so far, but we are not getting carried away. At the start of the season people said we had assembled the most expensive Bradford City side to go down. I didn't believe that then and I don't believe it when people say we are going to get promoted.

"There are 57 points to play for and there is a lot of teams in the promotion race."

Jewell believes that desire and workrate are two of the qualities that made City into strong promotion candidates.

He said: "If we lose the ball the players fight to get it back. They are good professionals and work very hard in training.

"We are going to have setbacks and that is when we need to dig in and work in the same direction. The players are all desperate for the team to do well."

Defender Andrew O'Brien who missed the Crewe match through suspension returns to the squad, but although Jewell will not confirm it it looks as if Ashley Westwood who had a fine game in O'Brien's place against Crewe will stay in an unchanged side.

He said: "A decision has been made, but I haven't told the players yet. If you take your chance and do well the chances are you will stay in the side. "

Financial problems have forced Palace to sell striker Matt Jansen to Blackburn for £4 million and Italian Attilo Lombardo looks to be on his way. Lombardo and Sasa Curcic have been left out of the squad and Hayden Mullins and Gareth Graham are suspended.

Australian Craig Foster, Chinese defender Sun Jihai and Leon McKenzie are added to the squad.

The quid-a-kid scheme whereby all children under 16 are admitted for £1 will be in operation.

Bradford City (from): Walsh, Wright, Jacobs, McCall, Moore, Westwood, Lawrence, Blake, Mills, Whalley, Beagrie, O'Brien, Dreyer, Rankin, Ramage, Watson.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.