The Not Retained List

Wednesday 10 April, 2002

Stuart McCall will leave Bradford City

Captain freed at the end of the season

Bradford City skipper Stuart McCall will leave the club at the end of the season after being told that he will not be offered a new deal with the Bantams. McCall, 38 in June, has been club captain since his return from Glasgow Rangers in the summer of 1998 and was a pivotal figure in almost every event at the club in that period.

Stuart McCall signed for City aged 16 and made his debut in the place of Cec Podd at right back before establishing himself as a central midfielder in the 1984-1985 Division Three Championship team that ended in tragedy with the fire of 1985. In the wilderness years that followed McCall, along with fellow Scot John Hendrie, kept City's performance level high on the field while the club found a home away from home. One returning to Valley Parade McCall was the key man in a team that staved off relegation with a run of eight results in the final ten games to move from 23 in the old Second Division to 10th and then reached the play offs for the top division, failing to win promotion by a single point.

McCall left the Bantams to join Everton in 1988 for £850,000 and notability scored twice in the post-Hillsborough FA Cup final. He went to the World Cup as part of the 1990 Scotland squad, scoring against Sweden after coming into the team following a first game defeat by Costa Rica that cost the team progression to the second round.

McCall joined Rangers for £1,200,000 and played a significant role in the nine in a row era at Ibrox forming a central midfield partnership with Paul Gascoigne. While at Rangers McCall represented the Glasgow giant in the semi-final of the Champions Cup, losing out to a Marseilles side that was later stripped of the title leading to speculation that the Gers should and would have had a chance at the greatest prize in European football. Scotland once again narrowly missed out on progression in a major competition in Euro 1996. McCall was controversially left out of the 1998 World Cup squad, Scotland returned home from France early all the same.

After returning to City McCall was the driving force begin City's 1998-1999 promotion to the Premiership and then went on to play a key role in the Premiership survival of the following season. As the Premiership dream turned sour McCall was called upon to be assistant manager under Chris Hutchings, caretaker manager and coach under Jim Jefferies. The following season rumours of disagreements between Jefferies and captain McCall were heard and after a training ground bust up, McCall was dropped.

Jefferies left not long after and new manager Nicky Law restored Stuart to the team. McCall once again played a pivitol role in the club's quest for survival with a goal against Crewe and a number of committed and quality displays.

McCall leave City 21 years after his debut having notched up two significant promotions with the Bantams in 1985 and 1999. He is regarded by many as the finest player to have ever worn the claret and amber shirt.

Stuart McCall's final league game for City will be at Walsall in two weeks time. His last league game at Valley Parade will be on Saturday against West Brow. He has a testimonial game against Rangers at the end of April.

Read tributes to City's skipper

Bower, Lee and Morgan offered new deal

Mark Bower has been offered a new three year deal by City that the club are hopeful he will sign before the end of the season. Andrew Lee and Robert Morgan have been given a one-year professional contracts.

Promotion hero Whalley leaves

Gareth Whalley, a key man in the 1999 promotion side, has played his final game for City and will leave at the end of the season. Whalley, who joined the Bantams for £650,000 with Ashley Westwood in the summer of 1998, was outstanding in the promotion side with a call up to the Eire side not out of the question at one point, but one or two impressive displays aside failed to build on that in the Premiership. Whalley has struggled with injury for the past two years.

Sharpe freed

Lee Sharpe has been given a free transfer by Bradford City. The player, who cost £200,000 after promotion in 1999, has failed to hold down a regular place in the City side mixing impressive displays with nothing games.

Halle to leave

Gunnar Halle has been freed by the club. Halle, who is on loan at Wolves, was offered a one year extension by the club on reduced terms which he rejected. Gunnar is set to return to Norway to take up a coaching role should he not get an offer of a contract at Wolves.

Grant and Worsnop freed

Gareth Grant and Jon Worsnop have been freed by the club. Grant was a very promising youngster but failed to build on impressive displays after being given a chance to shine by Nicky Law both at Chesterfield and with the Bantams.