Bradford City keeper Lewis excited for Northampton showdown

A win in Saturday’s mouth-watering tussle with Northampton would lift Mark Hughes’ men into the top three for the first time.

Lewis admits that is a massive incentive as they look to build on the away success by getting back to winning ways at Valley Parade.

“We’re always the favourites at home and I don’t care who we play,” he said.

“It’s a big game because we haven’t sat in those automatic places yet and that’s where we want to be.

“We set targets at the start of the season to go up automatically and it’s an opportunity to get in there.

“We’re aware of how big this is and I’m looking forward to it. We've then got the league leaders to follow so it's a tough little run but these are the games you want to play in.

“Obviously, there’s something on the line every week but I’m really excited to be playing against a direct rival knowing that we go third if we win.

“This is what’s on the line. You’re not relying on anything else, our fate is in our own hands.

“The ball is very much in our court and it’s up to us to manage that occasion.

“It’s a high-pressure game and up to us to stamp down our authority and show the rest of the league that we can do it at home.”

City have been unable to replicate their superb away form at Valley Parade - where they have gone four games since the last league win.

Lewis can understand the frustration from the huge numbers in the stands that they have not picked up enough home points so far.

“There’s nothing worse than not winning at home and seeing that many people turn out and being disappointed.

“I’d be the same. When you’re the home side, you expect to win.

“Sometimes I’m a spectator for large portions of the matches and I’m frustrated when we’re behind or drawing games and it’s not quite happening for us.

“There is an expectation here and there should be. We’re fighting for something and it’s about not disappointing the fans.

“The gaffer has alluded to that already this week. For some reason or another, it seems to be more of a problem for us playing at home and I don’t know why that is.

“Sometimes teams will come to Valley Parade and sit off. We’ll have more of the ball and it can get a bit passive.

“But we also know that teams are really up for it coming to the stadium. It’s a big day out and they see us as a scalp.

“We played Sutton in front of 3,000 and then you go to Valley Parade and there can be 18-19,000 there. Teams get bang up for that.

Harry Lewis enjoying a home win over Walsall earlier this season (Image: Tom Pearson)

“We need to ruin the day out for other teams because we know they will relish playing at our stadium.”

City crashed out of the FA Cup to Harrogate in a dismal last home outing but responded magnificently with back-to-back away wins at Mansfield and Sutton.

“Harrogate was massively disappointing,” added Lewis. “The gaffer was fuming and we really wanted to progress.

“You want to get to the third round and draw a decent team, so it was really frustrating to go out in that manner.

“You don’t want to lose any game ever but when you do, it’s so important to bounce straight back.

“We showed that we are going to be that team who can do that.

“We got beaten at home by Stockport before and our reaction was to go away to Salford and win there.

“We know Mansfield had a good home reputation and going down to somewhere like Sutton would always be difficult.

“I don’t really enjoy the long journeys on the coach and that can make it tough. Technically, they’re not on our level and that was evident during the game because they were more direct.

“But I felt we dealt with that well and I really didn’t have much to do. We won the physical battle first and foremost and then took our chances - and we’ve got Cooky (Andy Cook) once again to thank for that.”

At least, Lewis won’t have to deal with the danger of Northampton’s suspended 13-goal marksman Sam Hoskins.

“It’s certainly a bit of a lift that the league’s top scorer will be out, but we know they’ve got other potential threats as well.

“The fact they are sat third in the league shows they are a decent team and have got a good squad.”

Only Leyton Orient have conceded fewer goals than City so far, although Lewis has not kept a clean sheet at Valley Parade since the last win over Stevenage in September.

“We don’t concede many and I’m very proud of that but when you’ve got a one-goal lead it’s difficult to protect at times, especially in this league where teams throw bodies forward, it’s physical and you can get that lucky bounce.

“From my side, it’s about keeping lads on their toes in front of me and trying to see games out - as we did at Mansfield.”