Jackson quits as Bradford City boss

Peter told the board that in light of the poor start to the season, he felt that to resign now would give the club the best possible chance for the rest of the season – Club statement.

Bradford City are looking for a new manager for the third time in as many years after Peter Jackson resigned from the club five games into the season at a board meeting on Thursday afternoon. Jackson is the first manager to leave his post in the 2011/2012 season.

Early reports suggest that Jackson’s resignation is prompted by poor results but – with only four games gone – there seems to be little reason that the ebullient Jackson who has talked at great length about the team he has been building as being “his team” would feel that he could not improve results.

Jackson’s managed Bradford City some nineteen times winning four times, drawing four times and losing eleven. One can only speculate on the reasons why he would leave but that speculation would point to the decision not being planned. Up to the news that Jackson was leaving there was not even a hint that the manager would be exiting the club with both manager and chairmen appearing side by side in the decision making.

Jackson had gone back on his stated aim of building and using a squad with the announcement – from both Jackson and joint-chairman Mark Lawn – that the club were looking at signing loan players and one will wonder what the squad which Jackson assembled will make of their manager leaving after less than a month of the season. Certainly the reactions from the squad point to the departure being far from expected.

Player reactions, via Twitter naturally

The Bantams begin the process – once again – of looking for a new manager with Colin Cooper expected to take over for the game with Barnet on Saturday. Having had Stuart McCall in situ from July 2007 to February 2010 City have employed Peter Taylor for just over a year and Jackson for some six months from February 2011 to August and naturally questions will be asked about the joint chairman’s involvement in the former City captain’s exit which – at this stage – seems eagerly accepted given the early stage of the season.

Lawn and Julian Rhodes have a plan for improving the club – a plan which Archie Christie was hired to create – and that plan seemed in keeping with Jackson’s experience at Huddersfield Town building a young squad and taking it to promotion but friction between that planning and Jackson’s aims could have been the catalyst for today’s decision either to tender a resignation, or to accept that resignation, or both.

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