DAVID Hopkin insists City’s all-Yorkshire affair with Doncaster Rovers doesn’t feel like a proper derby.

But he wants his team to treat it like one at the Keepmoat Stadium this afternoon.

The Scot gets his first taste of battle for white-rose supremacy as a boss as he looks to register his first points since taking the Bantams helm.

Hopkin is braced for a tough clash against high-flying Rovers, even if he does not view it as genuine derby material.

He said: “If you’re talking about derbies, you’re talking Everton and Liverpool or Man United and Man City. You’re talking ones in the same city.

“To me, that’s classed as a bigger derby than playing somebody 45 minutes to an hour away and that’s no disrespect.

“It’s funny because you’ve got four or five derby games. Yorkshire’s a big place.

“In Scotland you’ve only got one or two. You’re only half an hour away from your nearest team apart from those up north.

“Every game could be classed as a derby. Twenty-five minutes or half an hour in the car and you’re there at most stadiums.

“It’s going to be difficult but players should remember that and treat it like a derby.”

Livingston did not have a real local rival during Hopkin’s successful stint north of the border.

“You look at where Livingston is,” he added. “They are in the middle of a dice.

“You’ve got Hearts and Hibs (one side) and Rangers and Celtic (the other). Livingston are the small club in the middle so they didn’t have a big derby game.”

Hopkin has suffered two defeats since succeeding Michael Collins but can see genuine improvement in the squad. He knows City will have to be on top of their game to stop a Doncaster side, who have lost only once.

He said: “I’m seeing a culture change and people buying into what I want to do. As long as we keep doing that in the performances then results will follow quite quickly.

“Doncaster had a great result last week at Walsall. They are a very fluent, attacking team and we know it’s going to be difficult, especially with them at home.

“We need to make sure that we’re ready defensively and match them.

“But the performances are getting better and the players are looking fitter.

“Hopefully we can keep a clean sheet. That’s the main thing.

“We know they try to get as many people forward as they can. They’ll attack you from down the sides and in middle areas.

“But I’m concentrating on Bradford and that’s the main point I’m trying to get across to them.

“We need to make sure things we’ve worked on in training and things we’re doing can cause Doncaster some problems.

“As I keep saying, we have got injuries but the players who have been here for the last two weeks have been fantastic.

“Hopefully we’ll keep working on them and getting them more organised as the season goes on.”