The Bradford derby is a football

derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

match played between

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. ...

and Bradford (Park Avenue). The derby has also been called the Wool City derby, referring to Bradford's history with the

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...

trade. The two clubs are the only two from Bradford to have played professional league football. The rivalry was first played in 1912 in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

, and there were 56 competitive matches between the teams, ending in 1969. The fixture is now played as a regular friendly, and the Tom Banks Memorial Trophy is awarded to the winner of this match.

History

had been elected to

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

ready for the

1903–04 Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

season. Their cross-city rivals Bradford (Park Avenue) joined the league five years later, for the same season as City's first in Division One. The first game between the two teams was on 19 November 1907, a 2-1 win for City. The first all-Bradford league match took place at

Valley Parade Valley Parade, known as the University of Bradford Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is an all-seater football stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. Built in 1886, it was the home of Manningham Rugby Football Club until 1903, when they ...

on 23 October 1914 in Division One in front of a crowd of 29,802, when City won 3–2. Park Avenue won the reverse fixture 3–0. The clubs met in the top flight just four more times before Park Avenue were relegated in 1920–21. City were themselves relegated to Division Two but a second successive relegation for Park Avenue meant the clubs did not meet again until 1927 in Division Three (North). That season's derby saw Park Avenue record a record 5–0 for a Bradford derby on their way to the title and promotion. City kept the title in Bradford the following season. Between the 1929–30 and 1936–37 seasons the clubs continued their rivalries until City were relegated, one place below Park Avenue. The derby was resumed from 1950–51 to 1957–58 in Division Three (North), a period which included an FA Cup tie in December 1951 and a record 5–0 win for City at home on 16 April 1956. A league restructure meant the clubs did not meet again in the league again until the 1963–64 season in

Division Four The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Whilst the division disappeared in name ...

, although the teams did meet again in the FA Cup in December 1958 and the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

in September 1963, when Park Avenue were 7–3 winners. The teams met on six successive seasons until 1968–69 when City were promoted to Division Three in fourth spot and Park Avenue had to seek re-election when they came bottom of the league. The final derby was on 25 January 1969, a goalless draw. There were a total of 56 derby games - 52 in the league and 4 in the Cup. The

following ''Following'' is a 1998 independent neo-noir crime thriller film written, produced, edited and directed by Christopher Nolan. It tells the story of a young man who follows strangers around the streets of London and is drawn into a criminal unde ...

season Park Avenue failed a fourth successive re-election and were replaced by

Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on Ne ...

, before they went into liquidation in 1974 and the teams have never met in competitive football since. In modern times, the teams have sometimes participated in a pre-season friendly.

Results

Statistics

''Statistics are correct as of 25 January 1969.''

League

Cup

Crossing the divide

The following is a list of players who have represented both clubs in at least one senior fixture.

References

* {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2020 England football derbies Bradford City A.F.C. Bradford (Park Avenue) A.F.C. Sport in Bradford Football in West Yorkshire