GARY Bowyer believes the goodwill of the fans will keep City going for their last-gasp bid to avoid the drop.

Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Doncaster, their fifth in a row, edged his side closer to relegation to League Two.

The gap to safety is now seven points with just five games to save their skins.

But Bowyer was impressed with how the Valley Parade crowd stayed behind the Bantams – and insists that backing will stop the players feeling sorry for themselves about their desperate situation.

He said: “We’ve got to see that as players as well as staff. I see it from the staff’s point of view with the way they’ve been towards me.

“I knew all about the supporters, of course I did, but to actually see it in action live for us was brilliant.

“They were magnificent and stuck with us all the way through.

“They are proud of their club and rightly so. The way they stick with you and support you is fantastic.

“How much people care for the club is one of the things that has really stood out very quickly in the time I’ve been here. It’s impressive.

“The support we had at Charlton was unbelievable and I’d imagine we’ll take a good following to Bristol Rovers.

“Like I say, we’ve got a big summer ahead. But we’re not giving up on these next five games.

“We’ve got to deliver for them and then it will be interesting.”

Bowyer was delighted to see Sean Scannell come through his first outing since October.

Scannell, who has recovered from a back fracture, came off the bench after 76 minutes.

The winger said: “It’s been really frustrating and there have been setbacks when I thought I would be back sooner.

“But I’m a positive man and now I want to help the team any way possible. If we win next week, it changes everything.

“Obviously, there aren’t many games left but as a team we need everyone to be involved and at their best. We can’t give up now.”

The City boss added: “You just saw glimpses of what he is capable of and what we’ve missed for the last six months. A fit Sean Scannell is going to be a massive player in this league.”

On-loan Leeds striker Mallik Wilks scored the winner from Doncaster’s only shot on target. Eoin Doyle’s header had earlier hit the post for City.

Bowyer admitted: “You look at the well-worked set play we had in the first couple of minutes. It took a deflection and you hope that it goes in.

“Then a fabulous ball from Billy Clarke sets up Doyler and it’s a great header. It hits the inside of the post and, like against Charlton the week before, goes out the other way.

“If it’s at the other end of the pitch, you almost expect it to hit the back of the net.

“But we switch off one time and get punished. It seems it’s like that when you’re where we are in the league.

“It was the same at Charlton and against Luton.

“That’s four 1-0s. Take out the Blackpool game, when we were nowhere near it, and it just shows you how tight it is and the difference between top and bottom.

“But we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. They are just the facts and we’ve got to get on with it.”