Battling Bradford returned to the Stadium of Light to haunt Sunderland as they snatched a precious point for their Premiership survival fund.

City were the last team to beat Peter Reid's men on Wearside when John Dreyer's goal handed them a vital victory on April 24 last year to launch their late charge out of the relegation zone.

And the memories of that day were clearly still fresh in the minds of those players who helped secure it.

Sunderland dominated the game for much of the 90 minutes in front of a record crowd of 47,812, but they were unable to make the pressure count as defenders Robert Molenaar and Andy O'Brien, as well as the industrious Stuart McCall, set the tone.

The home side had their chances, but they found Bantams keeper Gary Walsh in fine form, and as the visitors grew in belief, opposite number Thomas Sorensen was called upon to make an important second-half stop from Robbie Blake.

City too could have won the game, with midfielder Dean Windass squandering his side's best opportunity, but manager Jim Jefferies will have left the north-east delighted with some reward for a good afternoon's work.

By contrast, Reid's side had to make do with a point which eased them further clear of Arsenal in second place but was less than they would have hoped.

High-flying Sunderland made just one change to the side that started the 4-2 extra-time victory over Crystal Palace in Wednesday night's FA Cup third round replay as the suspended Stanislav Varga was replaced by Jody Craddock.

Jefferies also kept faith with the bulk of the team that went down 3-1 to Manchester United at Valley Parade last weekend, Jamie Lawrence coming in for Billy McKinlay and veteran Dean Saunders getting the nod over Ashley Ward.

The Wearsiders and their opponents battled their way into the Premiership in the same season two years ago, but their fortunes have differed enormously since.

Reid's men finished their first campaign in seventh place while the Bantams survived by the skin of their teeth, and the pattern is being repeated so far this season with the home side starting the game sitting second and the visitors propping up the rest of the division.

Bradford's predicament is such that they must set the points total ticking over once again if they are to stage a second remarkable escape, and they arrived at the Stadium of Light determined not to be beaten.

Molenaar was handed the unenviable task of trying to keep a tight rein on Niall Quinn, while O'Brien was detailed to shadow Kevin Phillips, who scored a hat-trick against the Bantams in a 4-1 win on Boxing Day.

England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson was in the crowd to see Phillips impress with his movement and link-up play in the opening 45 minutes, but both O'Brien and Molenaar stuck manfully to their task to preserve their clean sheet.

However, there were close calls for the Yorkshire side as they conceded ground in midfield to their confident hosts, and Quinn should really have put his side in front with 25 minutes gone after Don Hutchison and Darren Williams combined well down the right for the Scottish international to present the Irishman with a free header which he put wide of the post.

Walsh erased the memory of his costly clanger against Manchester United a minute later with a fine save from Alex Rae after Williams, Hutchison and Phillips had carved a path through the Bradford defence, but as the home side became increasingly frustrated, the chances dried up.

By contrast, City grew in confidence as the half wore on, and with Saunders and Robbie Blake getting beyond an at times square Sunderland back line on several occasions, their hopes of an unlikely repeat victory grew.

Indeed, Jefferies side had perhaps the best chance of the half 12 minutes before the break when Sunderland failed to clear an Eoin Jess corner, and when Lawrence headed the ball down for Saunders six yards out, he spun and blasted a shot high over.

Walsh produced another good save to deny Quinn within two minutes of the restart and then repeated the feat to keep out the Irishman's towering 52nd-minute header, but the visitors almost forced their way in front twice within three minutes.

Blake again got free down the left and crossed low into the middle where Saunders dummied to let the ball run to Windass, who smashed his shot into the side-netting with Sorensen scrambling across his goal.

But the Dane kept his side level on 56 minutes after Blake cut in off the wing and fired in a right-foot shot which the keeper managed to deflect on to the crossbar.

Urged on by Reid, Sunderland piled forward in the search for a winner, Rae shooting wide from the edge of the box and Stefan Schwarz seeing a free-kick deflected over by the tireless McCall.

However, City were refusing to settle for a point, and Ward and Peter Beagrie were introduced for Saunders and Blake as the game entered its final phase.

Lawrence proved Bradford's saviour 14 minutes from time when, after slipping and allowing substitute Kevin Kilbane a shooting chance, he bravely threw himself in the way of the ball and managed to deflect it past the post.

The home side threw everything they had at the visitors as the minutes ticked away, but they refused to give ground and managed to play out time to clinch the draw.