GRAHAM Alexander insists City should have won his first game in charge of the club, but admitted they were guilty of trying to score the “perfect goal” at times.

The Bantams dominated possession and territory at home to Barrow this afternoon, but ultimately it was the Cumbrians who went away happy, as they claimed a 2-1 win to move into the League Two play-offs.

The defeat leaves City down in 18th, and they were always having to chase the game having gone 1-0 down in no time at all.

Reflecting on the match, Alexander told the T&A: “You can’t start much worse than that, going 1-0 down after 20 seconds.

“Then you’re looking to see how the players react to that, and I thought it took us a bit of time to get going.

“There were reasons for that. As soon as an away side goes 1-0 up that early, they’re not going to make it easy for you, or come out of their shape and attack you.

“We found it a little hard to break them down in the first 25 minutes, and we lost a couple of players (Liam Ridehalgh and Daniel Oyegoke) in quick succession, which was a lot of adjustment to make.

“But we got the goal we deserved and could have scored another one if it wasn’t for their keeper making a great save.

“At half-time, we were able to make tactical adjustments with the players and we saw the fruits of that in the second half.

“We were the dominant team after the break and we should have won.”

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: City were immediately on the back foot after Dom Telford scored in the opening minute.City were immediately on the back foot after Dom Telford scored in the opening minute. (Image: Thomas Gadd.)

Despite that domination, the Bantams created few clearcut chances, something that was a source of frustration for Alexander.

He said: “We are disappointed with that, but you have to understand the opposition you’re up against, because Barrow play with a deep back five and a midfield three, so they try to crush the space for you to go and play in.

“But I certainly thought there were some really good moments in the second half and some good pressure from us.

“It wasn’t like a basketball game, where we had a bit of pressure and then it went up the other end, we constantly had it up in their half.

“But there were times I felt we could have let fly and committed to an action, as we were almost looking for the perfect goal at times.

“Sometimes you’ve got to have a shot, it might bounce somewhere and fly in. We’ve got to hit the target more with those opportunities.

“The effort and commitment of the players was certainly there and they really bought into what we want to do, especially in the second half.

“They got confidence from that, but we’ve just been done by a sucker punch.”

Ridehalgh went off with a concussion, so he is set to miss City’s trip to Notts County next weekend, while Oyegoke looks to have done damage to his shoulder, landing awkwardly after being fouled.

Alexander did not want to speculate too soon on how long the full-back would be out for, but hopes it will not be too bad for the youngster.

Finally, experienced midfielder Kevin McDonald has been ill, and after pulling out of training yesterday with a little twinge of his hamstring, he missed out on the squad today.

Alexander did not think that injury was serious and is hopeful he will not be out for too long.