Steve on a tough encounter at Valley Parade.

Steve Davis admits that his Crewe Alexandra side will go into this weekend’s encounter with Bradford City as underdogs, but says his team are more than capable of surprising the odds again. 

The Railwaymen recorded their first home win of the season against Sheffield United last time out in League One and the Crewe boss says that win has given his players a massive boost going forward.

Steve told the club’s official web-site: “We are usually the underdogs. Last week we weren’t against Eastleigh, so it can work both ways.

“What we did in our last league game was not only win our first home game but also defeated one of the favourites for promotion. It showed that if we can put two good halves together and play well then we are more than capable of getting a result.

“We know it is always tough going to Bradford and the atmosphere their fans can generate when they are doing well. You have to go there and compete and that is what we will be telling our players. They have to go there and be involved and compete for 90 minutes. You cannot stand off a team like Bradford and allow them to impose their game on you.

“We know their strengths and weakness. We know the influence (James) Hanson can have on their team and what they do but they do have good players all over the pitch as well. It is up to us to deal with that and stop the supply going into the box.

“If we can be effective at that and we play as well as we did against Sheffield United then we have proved that we can compete with the best in the league. 

“After seeing them on the final day of last season and the way they ended the season and started this one, I considered Bradford to be one of the main contenders for a top six spot and I still believe that they can achieve that this season under Phil (Parkinson).