As if scoring an own goal in the 95th minute to lose your team the match wasn’t brutal enough.
Unfortunately for Bradford City‘s Jack Shepherd, he had to not only deal with costing his team a valuable point, but a handful of jubilant Swindon Town players celebrating right in his face.
Bradford City – YouTubeShepherd tried to divert a cross to safety but only turned it into his own net[/caption]
Shepherd attempted to divert a cross played in from the left.
Instead, his attempted clearance came off his right foot and flew past a helpless Bantams gloveman Sam Walker.
Immediately after the ball hit the back of the net, a devastated Shepherd fell back on the turf and put his hands over his face.
That’s because his own goal gifted Swindon Town the winner in a thrilling 5-4 League Two encounter.
And several of the Robins players made sure to remind Shepherd of his error.
It was a result few Swindon fans would have expected after Bradford scored twice inside the first ten minutes via Calum Kavanagh.
However, the contest was flipped on its head in the 14th minute when Bradford were reduced to ten men thanks to a red card to skipper Richard Smallwood.
Swindon got on the scoresheet eight minutes after the red card when Neill Byrne turned the ball into his own net.
But the Bantams restored their two-goal advantage just past the half-hour mark as Kavanagh completed his hat-trick.
Yet Swindon took the momentum into the half-time break when Kabongo Tshimanga scored in first-half stoppage time.
Ian Holloway‘s side found the equaliser in the 62nd minute via Harry Smith, only for the Bantams to go 4-3 in front through Bradley Halliday.
Just when it looked like a 10-man Bradford would secure a vital victory, Smith bagged his second in the 90th minute to equalise once more.
But Shepherd’s cruel own goal ensured there would be a brutal twist at the very end.
The result left Bradford second in League Two on 73 points.
However, with the top three in League Two being automatically promoted, the Bantams’ destiny remains firmly in their hands.
As for Swindon, the 5-4 rollercoaster was their third-straight league win and left them in 12th, 20 points clear of the relegation zone.
It also improved Holloway’s record since taking charge at Swindon to 15 wins, nine draws and nine defeats from 33 games in charge across all competitions.
