Before Valley Parade’s return, a former Bradford City defender discusses his “shock” departure.
Matty Foulds, a former Bradford City and current Harrogate Town left back, said in an interview with the Telegraph and Argus that his decision to leave The Bantams and join Simon Weaver’s team was unexpected.
The 25-year-old moved across Yorkshire to play for Harrogate in January 2023, originally on loan. The defender made his spell with The Sulphurites a permanent one this summer. The defender went on to appear 52 times for Bradford in all competitions after signing for his hometown club in 2021.
Following an injury to teammate left-back Liam Ridehalgh, who would be sidelined for the better part of four months, defender Foulds initially claimed the left-back position at Valley Parade for the first half of the 2022–23 season.
Tolaji Bola, a loan player from Rotherham United in the Championship, was signed by The Bantams in January, making Foulds unnecessary for The Bantams and forcing him to join the fellow League Two team on loan.
The 25-year-old said in an interview with Telegraph and Argus that he never intended to leave the club and that his departure from Valley Parade came as a tremendous shock to his system. The interview was conducted before of Bradford’s League Two match against Harrogate on Saturday.
After playing 18 consecutive games, Foulds commented, “I was surprised they were bringing in another left-back.” “I understand they’ll bring players in because that’s football.
“But I met with Bradford’s manager (Mark Hughes), and I left that meeting with the impression that it was just good competition. Later that evening, I received a phone call informing me that I was being loaned. It surprised me.
“That’s how it happened for me. I
Since making the move to Harrogate in January, Foulds has gone on to make 28 appearances in all competition ever since joining the North Yorkshire outfit, with his loan deal being made a permanent one in the summer despite having one more year left on his deal at Valley Parade.
During his loan spell at Simon Weaver’s side, Foulds had also explained that he never heard anything from Bradford towards the end of his loan spell with the club and that he had a feeling that his time with Bradford, his hometown club, was coming to an end.
Foulds added: “It was a tough one but from the start of my loan spell to the end of the season, I didn’t really hear from anyone at Bradford.
“I took that as a sign that I’m not going to be part of the plans. There was no bad blood between me and the club, but it was a disappointing ending leaving Bradford.
“There were opportunities to go elsewhere in the summer, but it was a no-brainer for me when Harrogate came in. I’d had the loan spell there and they’d welcomed me with open arms.”
Matty Foulds is a solid and dependable left-back at League Two level and with him being set to face his boyhood club for Harrogate Town this weekend, there certainly doesn’t seem to be any bad blood between the football club and the player.
The way the 25-year-old has spoken about leaving Valley Parade raises the possibility that the situation may have been handled differently,particularly on the part of Mark Hughes, who essentially forced the player out against his will. At least, it is my opinion .
Harrogate will be hoping he is in great form this weekend when they play The Bantams, a team that has had a sluggish start to the 2023–24 League Two season. Nevertheless, what is Bradford’s loss is Harrogate’s gain.
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