Bantams have usually had it tough with November results

It’s safe to say Martha Gellhorn, one of the great war correspondents of the last century, did not have Bradford City in mind when she came up with the quote.

But it sums up the feeling of despair that seems to creep into every season at this time of year.

November has not been a good month for the Bantams in recent times.

So those back-to-back away wins which have deliciously set up this weekend’s Valley Parade showdown with Northampton have hopefully bucked a depressing trend.

It is the first time for five years that City have won two November league games.

Too often, the change of clocks signalling murkier, colder days have become a metaphor for sinking fortunes; those high hopes we set out with in the late summer sunshine replaced by familiar feelings of let-down and disappointment.

City did not manage a single November victory last season - when they weren’t chugging up and down the M5 to Exeter in the FA Cup.

The sheen was disappearing from Derek Adams’ ambitions with three draws before a costly loss at Tranmere.

Northampton’s visit produced a third straight 1-1 draw as Charles Vernam’s equaliser soon cancelled out Mitch Pinnock’s opening goal.

A line of dejected City faces at Leyton Orient in 2020 (Image: Thomas Gadd)

But the frustration was bubbling and grew three days later when City slumped to defeat in the second half on the Wirral having led at the break.

Twelve months earlier, Stuart McCall was suffering the November blues despite penning an extended contract.

There was no chance to celebrate that with a dismal defeat at Salford and then another to Leyton Orient which saw the returning Reece Staunton crocked with a season-ending hamstring injury.

City had heralded the start of November 2019 with a home win over Exeter to go second. But again, the momentum seeped away for Gary Bowyer’s men who paid for a lacklustre first half at Plymouth and then had to scramble for a point against Macclesfield.

By the rock-bottom standards of the 2018/2019 relegation from League One, November’s point-a-game haul from four games felt like one of the better efforts.

There was even a rare win in there for David Hopkin to enjoy against Oxford. But City also lost at home to Portsmouth, where Hope Akpan blew a golden chance in added time, before ending the month being whacked 4-0 on a wet and windy night in Luton.

All eyes were looking upwards in November 2017 - the last occasion when the Bantams picked up two victories in the month.

Both were on their travels, impressively at a Wigan side vying with them in the play-off places and then doggedly at Shrewsbury where future Premier League keeper Dean Henderson had to be held back from confronting away fans.

Shrewsbury keeper Dean Henderson is led away from the fans (Image: Graham Hunt)

But those wins were sandwiched between successive home defeats against Adams’ Plymouth, who were still bottom at the time, and Scunthorpe.

City had the same two-and-two return from the previous November when they were riding high in the early euphoria of McCall’s second spell at the helm.

Rochdale were crushed 4-0 to unveil Valley Parade’s new electronic scoreboard with a flurry of goals. Then James Hanson appropriately scored the winner against Northampton on an emotional night dedicated to the recently-departed Bobby Campbell.

But again, there were November no-shows from two long and fruitless trips - with Will Atkinson, hardly a prolific goal machine in his Bantam days, scoring twice for Southend and City coming up just as empty at Swindon.

Nothing since has been able to match the 10-point return from Phil Parkinson’s final November in the City dug-out in 2015.

A season that had begun poorly continued to pick up pace with three wins from five games against Blackpool, Crewe and Scunthorpe taking his side to the brink of the play-off picture.

Gary Liddle celebrates his goal against Crewe with Billy Knott (Image: Thomas Gadd)

But perhaps the most significant fixture that month was the goalless draw with leaders Coventry when the midweek home crowd included two would-be German investors sat with Julian Rhodes and Mark Lawn.

Owner Stefan Rupp has not seen a similar win ratio for City at this time of year since taking over. But maybe that is finally set to change.

The fixture schedule for November is lighter this year - thanks to the FA Cup slip-up against Harrogate - but a third league win on the bounce this Saturday would more than make amends.

A maximum nine-point November could be the indicator that fortunes really are changing down at BD8.