City boss Paul Lambert was not apportioning blame after his side let two points slip in the closing minutes of their Championship clash with Doncaster at Carrow Road.

Defender Adam Drury headed an own goal from John Oster’s corner seven minutes from time to give Rovers a 1-1 draw after the Canaries led through Grant Holt’s 15th goal of the season.

But Lambert argued: “I don’t think he could see it with Russell Martin in front and he had to go for it. He couldn’t let it travel in. It happens,” he said.

And he refused to be downcast after City’s fifth draw in nine matches.

He said: “We never got beaten. I played under one of the greatest managers, who always used to say ‘If you can’t win a game, don’t lose it’. We tried everything we could to win.”City stay fifth in the table, whereas victory would have moved them up to fourth.

“If you look at the results, even tonight, there are some bizarre ones. That’s what is going to happen between now and May,” said Lambert. “We haven’t been beaten – there’s always a positive to come out of a negative.

“A lot of teams will pick up points and lose points that they never expected to happen.

“But I’m not going to be too downbeat about getting a draw.

“We’re sitting fifth and we’re still well in the mix.”

There were a few boos at the final whistle, but Lambert said: “The last time this club was in the Championship, they couldn’t buy a win.

“I bet you any money you want you could ask that same crowd two years ago, they’d snatch your hand off to be sitting fifth in the league.

“It’s incredible what the lads have done. So I’m not going to criticise any lad.

“You’ve got to try to remind people we have done unbelievably to get where we are. That just shows you how far we’ve come. What we’ve done is created that feeling of really high standards and then when people don’t see you win, I think it’s harsh.”

Lambert admitted City had their chances to have wrapped up the points before Doncaster’s late equaliser.

“A lot of the chances we probably hit them too good and he blocked them,” he said. “Sometimes if you misconnect they go in.”

Goalscorer Holt suffered a kick on the knee and defender Zak Whitbread a kick in the face from Jason Euell but both players finished the match.