Simon Weaver reflects on Harrogate progress ahead of derby clash with Bradford

Harrogate boss Simon Weaver feels Saturday’s visit of Yorkshire derby rivals Bradford will serve to remind his club how far they have risen in recent years.

Weaver guided Harrogate to the English Football League in 2020 for the first time after a second promotion in three seasons.

The Sulphurites had climbed from the depths of National League North just three years after announcing they were going full-time.

Weaver told the PA news agency: “It’s a fixture that only two or three years ago we could only dream about, big occasions like this at our ground.

“I read a stat and when Bradford were in the Premier League in 2001, we were in Division One of the Northern Premier League – that’s the eighth tier of English football.

“We’re delighted to come up against big clubs like Bradford. It’s an exciting fixture to be part of and I imagine it will get the locals excited because compared to us they’re a huge club with massive tradition.”

In Harrogate’s first season in the EFL they beat Bradford home and away and went on to finish 17th in the table, 12 points clear of relegation.

“We play the underdog role again and we relish that,” Weaver said. “We’ve upset the odds quite a few times, so we’ll be aiming to do the same on Saturday.”

The Sulphurites rose to sixth in the table in late November, three points off the automatic promotion places, before slipping down to 14th after a dip in form.

They have won only one of their last eight but responded in midweek by halting in-form Mansfield’s bid for a ninth straight win in a goalless home draw.

Weaver, whose father Irving is the club’s chairman, said: “It felt like a win the other night around the place. Mansfield turned up in their droves and expected an away win because they’ve been