CITY’S caretaker bosses are winning the respect of the players because of their openness and attention to detail.

Mark Trueman and Conor Sellars take charge for their third game tonight at Grimsby – knowing a win would see the Bantams jump up three places to 18th spot for Christmas.

Their spell in charge remains open-ended with the club in no immediate rush to name a permanent boss because of the upturn in results and performances.

Paul Hurst is understood to be waiting in the wings but the academy duo’s position has been strengthened by the backing of the squad.

Sellars said: “Try and put yourself in their shoes. If you’ve got somebody coming in who’s working really hard to try and help you then you’re going to buy into it.

“If somebody is potentially not doing that as interim and they’re easy-going and blasé, then maybe they won’t show you respect.

“We just try to be honest. We’ve been open and transparent with who we are and what we want.

“Things have been going okay so buying into it comes from winning games and being solid and hard to beat.

“Long may it continue for us to be having success on the field because the players are taking everything on board.

“Fair play to them. They are professionals with a job to do and they’ve got to give their best because it’s their career as well.”

Grimsby are currently two points above City and Sellars is looking forward to pitting their wits in the Blundell Park dug-out against the vastly-experienced Mariners boss Ian Holloway.

“We’re excited for it. He’s obviously somebody with a lot of experience and managed a lot of good players and teams.

“They are very workmanlike. It’s maybe our biggest test because of how aggressive and intense they are.

“Our challenge to the players is to make sure we are better at that on the night. With the quality we’ve got, I’m sure they will give a good performance.

“It’s irrelevant if other people win if we keep picking up points. But it would be a nice feeling (to move further up the table) and we’re working towards that.”

The caretaker coaches are continuing to plot City’s progress through the busy festive period – while admitting they still have no idea how long they will be in charge.

Sellars, who reported no fresh injury concerns, added: “We plan, we turn up, we’ve got a schedule and try and do the best job that we can.

“There’s no clarity on day-to-day and what’s happening tomorrow. But we’ve got to try and imagine what’s going to happen and be proactive.

“Certain things are out of our control and the club are working hard to make sure they are in the best position possible.

“We’ve got to plan ahead for a number of weeks. If we prepare for the next six weeks and we’re not in the job next week, then so be it.

“We’ve got to make sure we are organised and know what’s going on and what the players need to do.

"Make sure everyone is singing off the same hymn sheet.

“We’ll be available, if someone comes in, to shed light on what we were going to do and how it looked in terms of the organisation.

“We’ll try to prepare as long as we can – that’s all we can do.”