Coming back from being a goal down on Tuesday night was tough - but it was made much easier knowing we had the fantastic support of the fans behind us.

It was really positive and the influence of the fans was really instrumental in that.

They were tremendous. They were certainly the loudest I have ever heard at Bootham Crescent in my time there.

We had to give them something to spark them up with and when the goal went in, it gave everybody a massive lift and that transcended through to the fans. You could feel it going round the ground as they celebrated.

They gave us a cheer when we went in at half-time and cheered us as we came out for the second half and that spurred us on and we did everything bar get the winner.

That level of performance was great and we have got to make sure that we maintain that to get ourselves out of the relegation zone, and the fans have also got to keep that level of support up.

What it did was it psychologically took away the fear factor from the players. When there's mumblings in the crowd people are conscious of it and don't want to make a mistake because they will get the fans on their backs.

But the other night it was very different. There were a lot more options and everybody wanted the ball. I could sense whenever I was on the ball there were three people that wanted it off me. And rather than having none, which forces you to hit a hopeful ball forward, you are able to make a telling pass.

As a player, it can make a huge difference. You don't really hear any particular chants or anything, you just hear the noise and you can sense the atmosphere, whether they are behind you or not.

It gives everyone a lift, myself included, when the supporters really cheer you on, especially because these are the best fans in the entire country as they have saved the club and you know that's what you are fighting for.

We knew we had let them down a bit against Macclesfield and wanted to show them what we could do, and it was obvious that the fans were nervous as well as the players.

People know that we are fighting for our lives and we really showed that on Tuesday by getting back into the game for only the third time this season.

That's what you want to see and what you need. I think there's a real fighting spirit among the players and it certainly helps having your experience back.

Mitch Ward came on and Liam George played his first game for a long time and it's that kind of experience that can make the difference.

The kids have come in and done well and they will be the future of this football club. But there have been one or two too many at times this season and it's nice to have some of the older heads back.

That - and the support of the fans - helped us claw it back from being a goal down and even though we didn't get the winner, because of the performance, it felt like a win.

Every point at this stage of the season is vital and we are now level on points with Rochdale with a game in hand.

And if we can match that level on Saturday, we know we can stay up.

Updated: 09:57 Thursday, April 15, 2004