Phil Parkinson believes this season’s League One is the hardest it has ever been.

Successive home wins have pulled City out of a worrying nosedive and bolstered their mid-table position.

With another Valley Parade game against struggling Stevenage on Saturday, the Bantams have another opportunity to put further distance between themselves and the relegation dogfight.

Parkinson, who watched their next opponents last night, has already warned against thinking the job is done because he knows the quality of the division.

“I’ve said it all along, even when we had the good start, that this division is as strong as it’s been for a number of years. You speak to other managers and they all say the same.

“Last season you had Doncaster going up with Yeovil and Bournemouth. Look at those three teams and compare them with the clubs this year, then it does look a stronger division across the board.”

Parkinson marked his 11th anniversary in management yesterday and this is his eighth campaign in the third tier. He also played a lot of his career at this level for Reading and Bury.

The City chief added: “Obviously it’s a division I’ve been in many times as a manager and a player so I’m a pretty good judge.

“Teams have got more scouts and more resources to use to analyse you as a team. We understand that and constantly talk to the lads about it on the training ground.

“We tell them what they have to expect and how teams are likely to react in situations. You have got to be prepared for that.

“We know we can’t just turn up at a game, have seven players play well and expect to win. That’s just not going to happen.”