Bradford City's Alex Pattison will be following scores after neither one thing nor t'other draw

The Bantams' 1-1 draw at home to Notts County on Thursday was a neither one thing nor t'other result for two sides hoping to finish in this season's top three and avoid the play-offs.

Victory would have taken Bradford top, but the draw means wins for Walsall, who host Harrogate Town, and Doncaster Rovers at Tranmere Rovers in Friday's 3pm games would drop them to fourth.

Wimbledon, who host play-off wannabes Chesterfield, will also have their eye on the automatics, and Colchester United and Crewe Alexandra – who meet at Layer Road – plus Grimsby Town (Swindon Town, home) and Salford City (Accrington Stanley, home) will all still harbour hopes of playing in League One next season.

Some players might try to feign a lack of interest or claim blinker-like focus on their own team, but midfielder Pattison admits he will have an eye out.

"It's tight, isn't it?," he said.

"We'll be training but if I'm honest, I'll be looking at the other games. It's only natural.

"There's three massive games left for us, four for the teams playing on Friday. I'm sure I'll have a look."

With such a congested field there are inevitably going to be plenty of match-ups between the contenders – Bradford's next two games are at Chesterfield (Easter Monday) and Doncaster (April 26) – and although manager Graham Alexander thought his side ought to have won on Thursday, Pattison felt the contenders cancelled one another out.

Ciaran Kelly opened the scoring with his first league goal, but former Sheffield United Premier League striker David McGoldrick scored a brilliant equaliser.

"It's taken a moment of brilliance from a great player at this level for them to score a goal," argued Pattison. "We could have done better to not let him shoot from there but I think a draw was probably a fair result.

"I thought we played well, had some chances ourselves and they had a few.

"I think I could have been better myself. I thought I was good off the ball working back but on the ball I could have been a bit better.

"The lads gave it their all as they always do but it was a point gained."

On Kelly's goal, a towering header from Brandon Khela's free-kick, Pattison said: "It's a brilliant header for Ciaran, I was buzzing for him.

"It doesn't look too nice for him, him going over on his ankle, so hopefully he's okay, fingers crossed.

"But I was buzzing for him to get the goal, he deserves it.

"He works hard day in, day out, as everyone does."