CITY must face struggling Leyton Orient with the same intensity that blew away Sunderland.

Billy Clarke insists tonight's "massive" clash at Brisbane Road carries just as much weight as the FA Cup to keep the Bantams in the thick of the play-off chase.

With games in hand, City have the opportunity to regain ground on the pack of clubs around them in League One.

Striker Clarke said: "We all enjoyed the aftermath of the cup win but now it is back to the league. We have prepared as well as we did for Sunderland.

"Orient is a massive game for us. By the time we kick-off, some teams will have played three games since we beat MK Dons in our last match.

"We will have games in hand on those around or above us. That is what I mean when I say it is massive.

"It is important we don't drop a level for Orient, especially after such a high of beating Sunderland. But we will prepare well and go at them."

The O's did City a favour on Saturday with their late, late show at Chesterfield. Oldham, another high-flier, also slipped up at home to Colchester.

Clarke said: "I kept a close eye on the results while we didn't play. Oldham and Chesterfield losing at the weekend was decent for us, even if Sheffield Unite did win at Bristol City.

"But that is not what we have to pay attention to. We need to concentrate on our own football and the great thing is our spirit here is great.

"A lot of that is down to the staff. They are great at preparing for all games – everything is spot on.

"Everything is written down for us and we know our jobs. We work hard but have good footballers as well."

Phil Parkinson is focused on City's own performances rather than the compressed league table as they try to build on a five-game unbeaten run. He is enjoying working with a confident bunch.

The Bantams boss stressed: "I've said for a long while that a lot are playing with real confidence. We've got players who are naturally confident in their own ability and always want the ball.

"Look at the way we played in possession on Sunday. Of course we worked hard, closed them down and did that part of the game, but there was also a calmness about us on the ball.

"I'm not looking at other results at this stage. With the fixtures and the FA Cup, we are going to have games to catch up.

"We've got to concentrate on ourselves and not what anyone else is doing. We're going well and we want to build on that."