GARETH Ainsworth dedicated Football League survival to the Wanderers fans who had supported him through the bad times.

The Adams Park faithful have had precious little to cheer this season, with Ainsworth himself admitting he could quite easily have been given the bullet for some of his side's poor runs of form.

He said the messages he had received from fans in the build-up to Saturday's do-or-die clash at Torquay had been nothing but positive however.

And the Blues boss could pick up a touch of writer's cramp as he vowed to give a personal word of thanks to every fan who had written to him.

He used the fan feedback as a way to spur his men on before they beat Torquay 3-0 to help ensure Wanderers avoided relegation into non-league football.

Ainsworth said: "I said to them, 'Don't worry, people will support you no matter what'. People I've spoken to this week have said, 'If you go down we'll support you', and that's the fans I have done it for. They are the ones who care, not the ones who only have the good times.

"I've always said the good times will be superb if you come through the bad times, and the majority of them have been through the bad times.

"Our fans could go to QPR, they could go to Brentford, they could go to bigger teams than us, but they have stuck by us and that's really special. I'm so proud to be the Wycombe Wanderers manager.

"If you've said, 'We believe in you Gaz' or 'We'll stay with you', then you've done your part this season as well; thank you.

"The mail I've had this week, I had so many letters of support and I'm going to try to reply to every one of them, because they have been fantastic. That's who I've done it for."

He added: "I'd like to mention my family and my partner Donna - they have been by me all the time and supported me and said we believe in you, and so have the fans.

"It's not been great this year, but to stay up like that, I'm still pinching myself."