Photo: John Rhodes

Bradford (Park Avenue) were held to a 2-2 draw by Darlington at the Horsfall Stadium.

The Quakers posed a much greater threat than they did in the last meeting between the sides, when Mark Bower’s side knocked them out of the Emirates FA Cup.

It took just two minutes for Darlington take the lead, harshly bringing the hosts back down to earth following the high of Saturday’s win over Chorley. Jordan Nicholson exploited a gap in the Bradford midfield to burst through and find the top corner with a curling effort.

Mark Bower was then forced to make an early change when Danny Lowe sustained an injury. Nicky Clee entered the fray and was thrown in at the deep end as the Bradford backline dealt with an early onslaught.

Luca Havern had to be alert to thwart Harvey Saunders after a slick move involving the Darlington forward and Josef Wheatley carved the hosts open.

A miscued clearance from Steven Drench then landed at Luke Trotman’s feet and the full-back teed up Stephen Thompson, who blasted over the crossbar.

The visitors then doubled their lead as Nicholson grabbed his second, capping off a swift attacking move with a composed finish from close-range.

Bradford, however, responded quickly. Lewis Knight dispossessed Wheatley before teeing up Jamie Spencer, who saw two shots blocked. The ball then fell to Knight, whose effort was parried by Hemming into the direction of Oli Johnson, allowing the forward to head home.

A golden opportunity to draw level followed when Spencer drilled across the face of goal, but Branson fired wide after arriving at the back post.

Darlington had no intention of simply defending their lead and came very close to adding a third. Saunders weaved his way past several defenders but was denied by Drench in a one-on-one scenario.

The opposing stopper Hemming then made an impressive stop to keep the scores level, pushing Knight’s driven effort wide of the post.

Bradford eventually levelled proceedings through Nicky Clee, who rifled into the bottom corner after the ball was worked out to the left flank.

The first-half continued to be a poor advert for defending when Bradford gave away a penalty on the stroke of half-time. Havern felled Wheatley but Drench saved Thompson’s spot-kick at full stretch.

HALF-TIME: Bradford (Park Avenue) 2-2 Darlington

Early drama ensued after the break when the visitors began appealing for a penalty within two minutes of the restart. There was a tangle of legs between Knight and Saunders, but the referee dismissed protests.

The tricky Nicholson was a thorn in Bradford’s side throughout the game but Clee made a superb last-ditch challenge to prevent the winger securing his hat-trick.

Nicholson then combined well with Trotman on the right flank but the latter’s shot flew wide.

Bradford appealed for a penalty of their own on the hour mark when Spencer insisted that his shot had struck the outstretched arm of Terrence Galbraith. The referee, however, ignored the fierce protests.

Both sides continued to hunt for the elusive winning goal but the defensive units had been significantly tightened since the half-time interval.

Beesley delivered the ball on a plate for Clee but Jonathan Burn launched himself in front of the thunderous effort.

Johnson then found himself in a promising position after the ball was threaded through to him by Knight, but his shot failed to find either side of Hemming.

It became apparent that the absence of a cutting edge would prevent either side edging themselves ahead as the game entered its final fifteen minutes.

Beesley lifted a powerful effort over the crossbar and Darlington’s Tom Elliott did the same minutes later.

Ben McKenna’s introduction as a substitute re-ignited the spark in Bradford’s frontline and his direct running caused problems on the left flank. He evaded the challenge of Burn before making an incisive dart into the box, but his strike was blocked by a sliding Trotman.

Branson has proven himself to be a goal threat from the heart of Bradford’s midfield but couldn’t weigh in to fire the hosts ahead, nodding over the woodwork after meeting a cross from the right.

A sliced clearance from Shane Killock allowed Nicholson to advance at an alarming pace but a miscued cross left Bradford off the hook as the ball rolled out for a goal-kick.

The hosts were given a stoppage-time scare when Galbraith connected with a teasing delivery from Elliott, but Drench plucked the defender’s volley out of the top left-hand corner.

FULL-TIME: Bradford (Park Avenue) 2-2 Darlington

Bradford (Park Avenue): Drench, Ross, Lowe (Clee 7’), Wroe (McKenna 61’), Killock (c), Havern, Spencer, Branson, Beesley, Johnson, Knight (Hurst 83’).

Unused substitutes: Toulson, Nowakowski.

Darlington: Hemming, Trotman, Elliott, Burn, Hughes, Galbraith, Nicholson, Wheatley, Ainge (c) (Syers 83’), Saunders, Thompson (Henshall 83’).

Unused substitutes: Glover, Hall, Stansfield.

Referee: Aaron Bannister

Attendance: 625

Bradford (Park Avenue) romped to an emphatic 6-0 win over cash-strapped Nuneaton Borough.

The opening ten minutes of the game were frantic as both sides hunted for an early opener.

Enoch Andoh raced to the byline before pulling back to Dior Angus, who could only watch as a deflection diverted his shot away from goal.

After stifling a dangerous-looking Nuneaton attack, Bradford broke swiftly, and Oli Johnson drew an impressive stop from Cam Belford.

Nuneaton’s Andoh then rattled the woodwork after latching on to a loose ball inside the 18-yard box.

Minutes after being denied by Belford himself, Johnson turned provider to tee up Lewis Knight but the Boro stopper produced another save.

Jake Beesley then came close, connecting with Nicky Wroe’s corner delivery but watching as his header looped over the crossbar.

The visitors were eventually rewarded for their pressure when Conor Branson gave them the lead. The midfielder, who is currently in a rich vein of form, was edged wide after rounding Belford but managed to lift the ball into the vacated net from a seemingly impossible angle.

Mark Bower’s side continued to pile pressure on the hosts and Belford did magnificently to tip a long-range piledriver from Jamie Spencer over the crossbar.

Wroe then doubled Bradford’s lead in sensational fashion, shooting from just inside Nuneaton’s half and catching Belford off his line.

The advantage was increased shortly after through Jamie Spencer. After Wroe’s corner delivery was cleared, the ball fell to Spencer and he rifled past Belford.

HALF-TIME: Nuneaton Borough 0-3 Bradford (Park Avenue)

Boro boss Nicky Eaden made a double substitution at the break and for the first ten minutes of the second-half, Nuneaton were on the front foot.

However, the struggling side couldn’t capitalise, and Harry Panayiotou squandered the best opportunity that fell Nuneaton’s way when he fired wide from just outside the box.

Bradford soon regained control of the game and a fourth goal looked inevitable as Nuneaton struggled to cope with their opponents’ attacking threat.

Lewis Knight poked into the path of Beesley but Belford raced out quickly to deny the forward.

Nuneaton were then reduced to ten men after Belford kicked out at Beesley whilst contesting a loose ball. The goalkeeper was given his marching orders and Beesley stepped up to convert the resulting penalty past stand-in stopper Mike Calvely.

The deflated hosts looked even more helpless after Belford was dismissed and soon conceded again.

Debutant Alex Hurst was teed up by Danny Lowe and tucked the ball away in the bottom corner with a neat finish.

He had an opportunity to net his second mere minutes later but couldn’t find the target with a thunderous strike from the left-hand side of the box.

After registering an assist, Lowe was keen to etch his own name on the scoresheet and drew an excellent save from Calvely with a well-struck volley.

Boro were reduced to nine men in the latter stages following an injury to Jack Blackham, allowing Beesley to notch his second and Bradford’s sixth. Adam Nowakowski’s shot was blocked and the ball fell at the feet of the on-loan striker, who steered past Calvely.

FULL-TIME: Nuneaton Borough 0-6 Bradford (Park Avenue)

Nuneaton Borough: Belford (c), Obeng, Davies, Richards, Calvely, Carter (Blackham 61’), Kelly-Evans, Wharton (Panayiotou 45’), McGurk, Angus, Andoh (Baker 45’).

Unused substitutes: Wesolowski, Benjamin.

Bradford (Park Avenue): Drench, Ross, Lowe, Wroe (Hurst 68’), Killock (c), Havern, Spencer, Branson, Beesley, Johnson (Nowakowski 71’), Knight (Clee 68’).

Unused substitutes: Toulson, Atkinson.

Referee: Barry Lamb