Derby's Premiership survival hopes are on the ropes after a Benito Carbone-inspired Bradford lived to fight for another day amongst English football's elite.

Manager Jim Smith's side, who finished the match at Valley Parade with 10 men following captain Seth Johnson's red card, are still five points above the relegation zone and without an away win in the top flight since December 2.

For Bradford, two goals from former Rams striker Ashley Ward - although Eoin Jess will undoubtedly be staking a claim for the second - gave them back-to-back wins for the first time this season.

Eight points from the last five games may only be staving off the inevitable, but at least manager Jim Jefferies' side are going down with a fight.

Smith and his players will now be anxiously looking over their shoulders for although there is a gap to the three teams below them, the Rams have to play the Premiership's top three in Arsenal, Manchester United and Ipswich in their final trio of games.

For Bradford, the opening 45 minutes were arguably the best they had produced this season, and in total contrast to the dire first-half display against Charlton on Good Friday.

Clearly, the confidence stemming from the eventual 2-0 victory over the Addicks has proved infectious because to a man, the City players looked composed, controlled and comfortable on the ball, with Italian Carbone pulling the strings.

The passing was neat and crisp, with the ball either played to feet or to runners behind the midfield and defence. Rare stuff from a club which has been bottom of the Premier League for all but one week since November 11.

If this is the kind of football which can be expected from City next season, then maybe Jefferies is heading along the right lines after all, despite the criticism he has taken for the squad clear out in recent months.

Derby, admittedly without injured captain Darryl Powell and inspirational defender Taribo West on international duty with Nigeria, were quite simply awful.

Derby's only two chances of the half came in the first and last minutes because in between it was all City as the Rams defence found themselves exposed time and again.

It was a Deon Burton half-volley which provided the early scare, with the Jamaica international latching onto a route one ball from goalkeeper Mart Poom, but with his shot just clearing the crossbar.

Then in the dying seconds it was Johnson who fired inches wide of the right-hand post after being picked out by a low cross from the left from Lee Morris.

But with Carbone sensational, Bradford produced some stylish football, although somewhat ironically the £40,000-per-week striker was not involved in the first goal.

It was still indicative, however, of the type of game City were playing as Stuart McCall's incisive through ball found Jess running behind the back of the Derby defence.

Midfielder Jess then turned in a cross to the near post for Ward to slide home his fourth goal of the season beyond Poom, and only his second in the Premier League for Bradford since last summer's switch from Blackburn.

Just two minutes earlier Poom had been forced into a superb double save, initially beating away a curling 20-yard Carbone free-kick, with the rebound falling directly to Andy Myers, but with the subsequent goalbound header at a comfortable height for the Estonia international.

Carbone was either the instigator, or at the heart of a number of Bradford moves, but Poom's goal was not breached again until before the break as Derby also survived a couple of penalty appeals, one of which appeared to be a clear handball against Chris Riggott.

Derby at least attempted to make a game of it at the start of the second half until Johnson's sending-off for a dreadful two-footed lunge on McCall in the 57th minute, with their best chance of the match having materialised moments before.

Walsh spilled a powerful free-kick from Horacio Carbonari, following McCall's foul on Giorgi Kinkladze, with the rebound falling to Rory Delap for a neat flick only for the City keeper to redeem himself with a faint touch in deflecting the ball an inch wide of the left-hand post.

Although Bradford then dominated due to their numerical advantage, Derby almost came close to the goal which would have condemned City to the drop as Kinkladze fed a ball through to Burton, but with the goal at his mercy the Rams striker drilled his 12-yard shot wide.

With Derby then throwing men into attack, they were leaving themselves exposed at the back, finally conceding a second in the 88th minute with a 20-yard shot from Jess deflecting past Poom off Ward.

Teams

Bradford: Walsh, Myers, Molenaar, Jacobs, Halle, McCall, Whalley, Ward, Blake (Grant 79), Carbone, Jess.

Subs Not Used: Davison, Nolan, Lawrence, McKinlay.

Goals: Ward 16, 87.

Derby: Poom, Carbonari, Riggott, Delap, Boertien, Kinkladze, Eranio (Gudjonsson 76), Johnson, Murray, Burton, Morris (Christie 61).

Subs Not Used: Mawene, Bragstad, Grant.

Sent Off: Johnson (58).

Booked: Boertien, Gudjonsson.

Att: 18,564

Ref: N Barry (Scunthorpe).