IT IS meant to be New Year, new start - but Stanley didn’t follow that script.

 After bemoaning the home form at the latter end of 2007, two aways wins brought renewed talks of a play-off charge if the Reds could get their act together on home turf.

 However, boss John Coleman has got a real new year hangover as he admits they need to drastically sort out their FES results in 2008 if those dreams are going to come true.

 While Wrexham in the relegation spots have the worst home record in League Two, the Reds aren’t far behind after they fell to their eighth league defeat out of 12 games against Bradford on New Year’s Day.

Every time there is cause for renewed optimism, it seems to be quickly snuffed out with the home shows - and the boss admits he can’t put his finger on what is going wrong.

“I am very disappointed,” said the manager, after the Bantams loss.

 “They are not the first team who have come here and not had to do anything to win the game.

“I think we are a better side than Bradford and that is clear for everyone to see but if we keep defending like that, we are going to get punished. We don’t look like we have a clean sheet in us and, if you have got to score two goals to win a game, it is doubly difficult before you start.

“It is so frustrating as we know we can play better but unfortunately for us, we are defending badly and it is costing us.

“I can’t put my finger on what is wrong as we talk about it and go over things in training but our home form is shocking, to be honest.

“We need to get it out of our system as that is two losses on the spin and we cannot get into a rut.

“We have got to better than that. Teams are coming here and having to do nothing to win. Bradford haven’t had to work for a win.”

Bradford manager Stuart McCall, whose side got a measure of revenge for a 3-0 thumping by the Reds at Valley Parade, saw the game differently.

“We deserved the win,” he said. “It was a poor first 45 minutes by us and Donovan Ricketts’ saves kept us in it.

“But in the second half, we made more breaks and could have scored a lot more.

“You need to come to places like Accrington with the right attitude and we had it.”

It was disappointing as there was such a mood of optimism ahead of the match especially with the news last season’s Supporters Player of the Season Andy Todd had returned on loan from Rotherham.

 He replaced Ian Craney whocouldn’t play as his loan spell from Swansea was up.

 And if the Reds had continued with the fire they showed in the opening 30 minutes, it could have been a different story.

 Todd was making his runs down the right flank which had proved so influential in last season’s battle against relegation.

 And he could have had a dream start but blasted over on two minutes while John Miles sent Roscoe Dsane galloping through but Ricketts denied him.

 The Jamaican keeper then dived low to deny Todd and, minutes later, slid in with Paul Mullin but the loose ball went well wide of the empty net. And recent goal machine Andy Procter headed over in a good position as it was all Stanley.

 It was a solid opening with the Bantams not coming close and the only drama was the departure of injured referee Barry Knight, who was making a return to league football after a year out with an Achilles injury.

The visitors didn’t seem to fancy the trip from their plush stadium in Bradford initially but then they gradually began to make an impact.

 Experienced striker Peter Thorne fired just over and winger Omar Daley started to get down the left wing and cause problems and was inches off target just before the break.

 Coleman said he had stressed the need for concentration during the break but it went AWOL within a minute.

 A Paul Evans’ corner was punched by Ian Dunbavin, the ball bobbled around the area and came out to Matthew Clarke who rifled it into the back of the net in front of their 1,500 home fans.

 After that, the Stanley heads seemed to drop and it was all Bradford.

 Daley was allowed time and space to race into the area but his finishing was poor while Barry Conlon appealed for a penalty under a challenge from Sean Webb but replacement ref Mark Heywood ignored the appeals.

The Reds were struggling from set-pieces and Dunbavin did well to keep out a Thorne header.

 Coleman put on three substitutes with 17 minutes to go and went 3-4-3 with David Brown, Leighton McGivern and Billy Dennehy getting a chance.

 However it was Dunbavin who was next in action smothering Conlon’s shot after the striker broke the off-side trap.

 Only in the final 10 minutes did Stanley start to create something with McGivern hacking an effort wide and Dennehy’s cross just missing the head of Mullin while Phil Edwards felt he should have had a spot kick after a challenge in the area.

Then, as the clock hit 90 minutes, the width of the crossbar denied Stanley a draw.

A superb free kick from McGivern could only find the head of defender David Wetherall and he flicked it onto the angle of his own post before it went out.

 The resulting corner should have yielded at least a chance for the Reds but Bradford got the ball and broke with Daley. Dunbavin came out and stopped him but the ball ran loose for Joe Colbeck to finish into the empty net.

 “There is a fine line between success and failure,” admitted McCall. “They hit the post after a disputed free kick and then we broke and scored - it goes to show.”

 Coleman will be praying it is a success story for his side tomorrow at home to Chester.