City came back to snatch a 2-2 draw at Vicarage Road on Saturday and Boothroyd told the CT: "We did our best to lose it, but we got back into it and I'm delighted that our fans were bouncing at the end because it's a long way to come for what they had to watch for two thirds of the game and it must feel like a win for them.
"I'm pleased for myself as well because I was thinking that I would have to dig into my own pocket and pay for all the fans - and with nearly 1500 of them here that would have worked out very expensive!
"To have a successful season you've got to show spirit and courage.
"All the people I've met in Coventry have said to me 'that's what we want - we want passion, we want drive, we want workers' and they certainly got that for 30 minutes.
"Three or four of the players are very annoyed with themselves and that's a good sign.
"We were absolutely abysmal for an hour - and I don't use that word lightly - but our fans kept behind us which was brilliant and in the end we sent them home with something to smile about.
"To be dominated as we were but then roll up our sleeves and dig out a point is an encouraging sign. "Football is about scoring goals and getting points when you play awful, and we certainly played awful!"