Bradford City talent Lewis Richards seemingly made good call

His main competition for that role is Tyreik Wright, but the former Plymouth Argyle wideman has been ruled out for at least the next couple of months with a bad quad injury.

Many Bantams fans are imploring manager Graham Alexander to bring in a new player in that position in January, but the next eight weeks or so should provide Richards with an extended audition to prove a new starting left wing-back is not a priority.

While bad news for Wright, it again makes Richards’ brave decision to leave Premier League Wolves at just 21 last August look like the right call.

He will soon be making his 50th appearance for City, when instead he could have been waiting forlornly for his first-team chance in the Black Country.

Richards told the T&A: “I’m very happy that I came here.

“What you get from the fans at City, you just wouldn’t get that playing Under-23s football.

“With the size of this club, it was a massive opportunity that presented itself to come here last year.

“You’d be silly to turn it down in my opinion.”

Richards came off the bench to set up Andy Cook’s goal in City’s last league game against Doncaster, so that positive cameo, combined with Wright’s injury, means he should start tomorrow at Fleetwood.

The young wing-back admits the focus is very much on what the Bantams can do in any given game though, with that taking priority over the way 15th-placed Fleetwood are performing currently.

Fleetwood have won four, drawn six and lost three of their 13 league games so far this season under Charlie Adam. (Image: PA.)

He said: “We’re very much focused on ourselves.

“The players we’ve got in this team, and the squad depth we have, whoever is selected is good enough to help us win a game of football.”

Decent results have been in plentiful supply for City this season, with just five defeats so far in 18 games in all competitions.

The Bantams sit seventh in League Two currently and know a good run could help them solidify their spot in the play-offs or even in the automatic promotion places.

Reflecting on the season so far, Richards said: “I do feel like we’ve dropped points in the league at times.

“But all we can do now is just keep pushing on from here.

 “It’s all about trying to go higher up the table and finishing in the best position we can.”

Away from the league and Richards also reflected on City’s upcoming FA Cup second round tie at Morecambe, with the draw made on Monday evening.

It will mark the Bantams’ second trip to the Shrimps this season, with Richards playing the full 90 minutes in the 1-1 draw in the league there at the start of last month.

City loanee Jack Shepherd jumps for joy after salvaging a late point for his side at Morecambe last month. (Image: Thomas Gadd.)

Asked if that game can act as a reference point when City return to the Lancashire coast in three weeks, Richards said: “I definitely think it can.

“The second half of that game last month we played a lot better than we did in the first.

“How we finished that match is how we want to start in the FA Cup game there.”