PROGRAMMES OF OLD
Published in the Bradford City AFC match day programme for the above fixture
Today is the 13th meeting between Cheltenham Town and Bradford City since the 2006/07 season (at the end of which we were relegated from League One). Cheltenham secured promotion to the EFL in 1999 and since then have had two spells in the third tier (a total of four seasons), four spells in the basement division (16 seasons) in addition to a single season back in the Conference.
Thus far we’ve played each other 11 times in the league and honours are even with four wins apiece. Of the six seasons we have been in the same division, five have been in the fourth tier.
The Robins have won only once at Valley Parade (in November, 2011) whereas City have secured two away wins which were in our first two visits to Whaddon Road (in September, 2006 and then August, 2009). In cup competition we won 1-0 at Cheltenham in the Football League Trophy in January, 2017.
The programmes from 2006/07 are featured and it will be noted that the City programme at the time of our first home game with Cheltenham was called Bantams World. During the last twenty years there have been four different titles adopted for the matchday magazine.
Between 1996-2002 it was titled Claret & Amber and then Bantams World between 2002-11. For the 2011/12 season The Bantams was adopted before resorting to the current title, The Parader from the start of 2012/13.
The title of The Parader is not new having originally been used between 1932-40, in 1978/79 and then for part of the 1981/82 season. It was also applied as the title of supporter yearbooks in 1951 and 1952. The title of The Parader has thus been the most used at Valley Parade whereas The Bantams has been the least, for the second half of 1981/82, 1982/83 and in 2011/12 only.
To date these are the only titles that have been adopted for the match day publication from its origins at Valley Parade in 1909 (prior to that there had been issues of single teamsheets). As far supporters are concerned however it has always been known simply as ‘the programme’.
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