 Robert Campbell was appointed by a 13 @-@ man sub @-@ committee to be the club 's first secretary @-@ manager from a shortlist of 30 applicants . <unk> duties were carried out by committee member <unk> , with Campbell 's role more on the playing side . The committee assembled a squad at the cost of £ <unk> 10s <unk> . Their first game was a 2 – 0 defeat away at Grimsby Town on 1 September 1903 , and first home game was six days later against Gainsborough Trinity , played in front of a crowd of 11 @,@ 000 including the Lord Mayor and Lady <unk> of Bradford . It was not until the third game against Burton United that the club recorded their first victory , on the way to a 10th @-@ place finish in Division Two . The club faced having to apply for re @-@ election in their second season , until five wins in the final six games lifted the club to eighth position . In November 1905 , Peter O 'Rourke , one of the club 's centre @-@ halves , was appointed manager , with his last game as a player coming the following month . He guided City to finishes of 11th and fifth and then earned promotion to Division One in 1907 – 08 . The season had started with an 8 – 1 victory over Chesterfield and included another six victories when City scored five goals or more , before promotion and then the title were assured with successive victories over Derby County and Burnley in April . 
