Sam Stubbs admits his disappointment is "difficult to put into words", following yesterday's defeat in the Sky Bet League Two Play-Off Semi-Final Second Leg to Carlisle United.
The centre-back admitted City “did not play well enough” on a tough afternoon in Cumbria, and described the sensitive atmosphere in the dressing room at full-time.
Stubbs said: “It is difficult to put into words. The feelings we have now are hard to explain.
“In terms of how the game panned out, it is a difficult one to take.
“There is not one word to really describe it, to be honest. We are all disappointed.
“The dressing room is low at the moment. It is tough.
“From a personal point of view, it is a kick in the teeth from a footballing perspective.
“We did not play well enough, so as a collective we are upset.”
The Liverpool-born defender thanked the “unbelievable” support from the travelling Bantams, and is hoping to use the setback as motivation for the coming campaign.
The 24-year-old anticipates a “tough” summer, but believes City can harness yesterday’s heartache into something more formidable next season.
“Collectively, we just thank our fans,” he continued.
“We are honoured to be supported by them. They are unbelievable. There is a demand and expectancy from them, which is fair.
“We understand how they feel at this moment, and we feel for them as we could not provide the end goal we all wanted.
“Next year, we need to use this feeling as motivation. It is the worst feeling I have had in football.
“We have a tough summer to get over this horrible feeling, and when the next season comes back around, we can get back to work and push even harder.
“It might sound like just words - when we say we are going to bounce back - but I think we will certainly do everything to not feel like this again.”