Bradford boss David Hopkin hails loanee Lewis O’Brien after crushing win

Manager David Hopkin forecast a “bright future” for young midfielder Lewis O’Brien as Bradford moved off the bottom of Sky Bet League One with a 4-0 win over Walsall.

It was their biggest victory for two years and only their fifth of the season.

O’Brien, 19, who is on loan from Premier League neighbours Huddersfield where he was academy player of the year last season, has been Bradford’s stand-out player in recent weeks.

Hopkin said: “Lewis has a bright future. Everything he did in the game was top class. Everyone who wants to go to the top must have self-belief and he is a fantastic kid.”

O’Brien laid on Bradford’s first goal with a low cross from the left to the far post where right-back Paul Caddis scored with a right-foot shot.

The Bantams then took charge of the game with two goals in nine minutes from David Ball, who is on loan from Rotherham.

Substitute Eoin Doyle completed the scoring in the 83rd minute when he converted a cross from Kelvin Mellor.

Hopkin said: “I enjoyed the performance. The first half was an even game and we scored a fantastic goal through Paul Caddis but, after playing 120 minutes against Peterborough in the FA Cup in midweek and then play like we did in the second half and keep going is credit to the players.

“It is important we are physically fit and keep up the momentum and the whole squad are working hard to get results.

“It’s nice to be off the bottom of the table and I’m happy we are turning the corner. It’s never nice being in the bottom four, but we need to stick together and make sure we don’t slack off.”

Walsall manager Dean Keates said: “We tried to play too much football. In those conditions we should have been more direct, but the standard of the second-half performance was nowhere near good enough and we expect better things next week.

“Take nothing away from Bradford, but we caused our own problems.

“We had a lot of opportunities in the first half and, even though their keeper made one or two saves, we should have taken them.

“Decision-making is a massive thing in football and we didn’t manage the conditions.”