Bantams boss throws down challenge to striker Vadaine Oliver

The big striker made his presence felt after replacing Tyler Smith for the second half of City’s EFL Trophy defeat against Rotherham last night.

Oliver hit the inside of the post with a header – the first of three home players to be thwarted by the woodwork – and proved a handful for the League One side’s defence.

It was a contrast to his performance 11 days ago at Fleetwood when Alexander hauled him off at half-time.

The City boss said: “I thought all the subs made an impact when they came on, but Vadaine has got to give us that.

“He’s got to be a dominant force for us and, to be honest, I didn’t think he was at Fleetwood when I started him two weeks ago.

“I needed to see a bit more from him and he showed that. He was aggressive and I thought he dominated his opponent and had opportunities to score.

“That’s the Vadaine we need and I think there were some strong individual performances from lads who started as well.

“It was great to see a couple of lads who have joined us recently play, especially Hunty (Paul Huntington) as it was his first start and probably his first 90 minutes for a considerable amount of time.”

Defender Paul Huntington started his first game in seven months (Image: Thomas Gadd)

Centre half Huntington was one of six changes to the City line-up.

The former Carlisle skipper was starting his first game since April 13 and Alexander was delighted to see the 37-year-old last the distance against Rotherham’s Jordan Hugill.

“I made contact to see if he was okay with 15 minutes to go and he gave me the thumbs-up,” added Alexander.

“He controlled his position and opponent all game. That’s a striker who has cost a lot of money over the years and he didn’t give him a sniff all night.

“His composure and distribution was really good. For us, it was a bit (of a case of) what are we going to get?

“We have seen bits in training, but not a lot of natural match action. Fair play to him, I thought he was excellent.”

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