ALEX Gilliead reckons the fight for a City shirt this season will keep everyone on their toes.

Gilliead enjoyed his 45-minute outing in Tuesday’s 5-0 win at Bradford (Park Avenue) to kick off his third spell at the club.

Derek Adams fielded two completely different teams in both halves to underline the options he has at his disposal.

And Gilliead sees that as a way of keeping standards high for the season ahead.

He said: “Having that strength in depth is massive. You see how often we play Saturdays and Tuesdays in League Two.

Having two players for every position can’t do you any harm and I think the lads showed we’ve got a lot of quality in the squad.

“We’ve got a few young lads coming on who’ve obviously showed they can step up as well. They are all senior players.

“We showed what the gaffer wants us to do, play with high intensity and getting good touches on the ball.

“It’s good be back playing and I’m more than happy to be back in front of the fans.”

Just over 1,100 tickets were sold at the Horsfall Stadium and a restricted crowd of 2,000 will watch Saturday’s home friendly with Doncaster – the first time that supporters have been allowed into Valley Parade since February last year.

“It makes such a big difference,” added Gilliead. “The fans needed to come back as soon as possible.

“Even when you’re walking out, hearing them clapping and cheering gives you that lift. It just feels right.

“I’ve played at Park Avenue before and it’s always a good work-out.

“We took a bit of time coming into it even though we scored early on. But the second half team did very well and scored a few more goals so overall we’re very happy.

“It starts to feel a bit more real once the pre-season games start. We’ve still got a lot to go but that’s good to get us ready.

“You can’t replicate match fitness. You’ve got to play games to get that sharpness and gear you up to playing so often during the season.

"We’re all happy to see the back of the running track and get on the pitch at last. But you need that and it certainly helps.

“Saturday will be a hard test because Donny are always a good side.

"But we need to go out there at Valley Parade and play how the gaffer wants us to, setting our stall out approaching the season."