Scunthorpe boss Keith Hill ‘quietly smiling inside’ after Bradford draw

Posted Sunday, November 28, 2021 by PA

Scunthorpe boss Keith Hill took plenty of heart from his side’s 1-1 draw with Bradford.

Hill was left still looking for his first win since taking charge earlier this month as Yann Songo’o’s second-half equaliser cancelled out an Aaron Jarvis header.

But Hill believes his team are making positive strides after successive home draws.

He said: “I’m looking at the performance and where we were and I’m quietly smiling inside.

“The first half was exceptional in terms of controlling a good opponent. We played some really good football and it was a superb header.

“There was a good balance between players who can accept the challenges in and out of possession. We are making good progress in becoming a team.

“We’re looking for that improvement every time and then it’s got to become an everyday reality.

“I want the players to express themselves within that framework and there was nobody shirking that responsibility. I saw a very good, solid League Two performance today full of heart.

“The conditions didn’t help, but we stood up to the responsibility of defending our goal. But I was disappointed to concede to a set-play because that comes down to individual responsibility.”

Scunthorpe struck five minutes before half-time when Jarvis nodded home from Ross Millen’s cross.

Bradford had the strong wind behind them in the second half and levelled midway through when Songo’o converted a corner by Callum Cooke.

“I thought we stood up and were counted,” said manager Derek Adams. “The conditions were difficult and we were against a very tough wind in the first half and lost a poor goal.

“We grew into the game and created some good openings. The second half was always going to be different because we had the wind.

“We gave away too many fouls in the first half which put us under pressure and we should have done better with the goal.

“We dominated the second half and scored a good goal. We hit the post and missed some unbelievable chances around the six-yard box.

“We lacked a bit of quality to finish off the chances that were falling for us and we couldn’t find a way to get the second goal. But that’s been the story of our season.”

Adams, who lost winger Abo Eisa to a hamstring injury, also felt his side could have had two penalties for challenges on Levi Sutton and Songo’o as Bradford pushed forward chasing their first win in six games.

He said: “The Songo’o one was clear, but Chris (referee Chris Sarginson) didn’t see it like we did. He’s driven into the box and got clipped and Levi was similar but we didn’t get it.”