CITY 1 SWINDON 0

IT WAS a sure sign that City have become genuine promotion contenders.

After looking totally toothless all afternoon, Swindon suddenly threatened to show some late bite.

James Brophy’s twisting run took him through a couple of challenges and into the penalty area where he appeared to be clipped by Nathan Clarke.

Over 18,000 sets of eyes were locked on referee David Coote – who did nothing.

And in that moment, you sensed that the Bantams really have become one of the serious players at the top of League One.

It looked a classic big-team call – or non-call in this case; the team with that winning momentum at the right end of the table getting the benefit of the doubt against opponents who just want their season to end.

More boisterous bosses than Swindon’s young manager Luke Williams would have created a song and dance on the touchline.

His team have not won in seven games ever since he penned a marathon five-year contract. Moments like that won’t help.

But it demonstrated vividly that the tide is currently firmly in City’s favour.

Phil Parkinson acknowledged it was a big break – he too had expected Coote to reach for his whistle – but also pointed out, with some justification, that it was about time officials cut his team some slack in the penalty area.

How many times have City felt they were on the wrong end of similarly questionable instances?

And he was long overdue a positive result against Swindon.

This was Parkinson’s first win over the Wiltshire side as City boss at the eighth attempt. They had not taken a point from the last four meetings.

A home defeat to Swindon had also proved to be his final game before the sack at Charlton – the season after the Robins had dumped his team out of the play-offs.

Knowing Parkinson, any thoughts of so-called revenge would have been buried away. He is not one for bothering about such trivialities.

This was all about maintaining the momentum that is embedding City deeper into the play-off reckoning.

And for the second week running, several results elsewhere fell nicely into their lap.

Ghosts of 2013 seem to flicker with each fixture.

City did it then with a week to spare as their strong late surge coincided with rivals imploding.

Are Burton going to be this year’s Exeter? A penny for their thoughts over the Bantams’ current charge – could history be about to repeat itself as a possible play-off sequel beckons?

Parkinson delayed his post-match press call to watch the Grand National as his tip, The Last Samuri, came in second.

What odds on his team following suit and skipping the play-off lottery all together by nicking an automatic promotion ticket?

Parkinson went into full politician mode when the question was put to him, carefully steering his comments well away from an actual answer.

But when the gap to second is closer than the one to outside the top six, then it does surely become a potential – if still unlikely – goal.

Not that Parkinson will allow his players to start talking – or even thinking – like that and he’s right to do so.

In the same way Claudio Ranieri refuses to entertain mentions of the Premier League title, those other master practitioners of the 1-0 win will not look beyond the next task of Shrewsbury away on Saturday and leave the dreaming to the fans.

But he did admit hearing that Barnsley had lost at home to Chesterfield had been an unexpected bonus.

You wonder if the open-top bus parade on Thursday to celebrate winning the JP Trophy had taken their eye off the ball.

In the same position, it’s hard to imagine Parkinson allowing the same sort of partying so close to their next game at such a critical juncture of the season.

Now Barnsley’s game in hand tomorrow becomes a must-win affair for Paul Heckingbottom’s side to stay within touching distance. Meanwhile City have some room to manoeuvre.

There will be just as much attention in West Yorkshire on Gillingham and Walsall’s showdown – a draw between them and you can imagine the hype really starting to build.

But let’s be honest, Saturday’s win was far from an emphatic show of intent.

Against opponents predictably lightweight minus League One top scorer Nicky Ajose and creative force Jonathan Obika, it still became more of a slog than it should have been.

Not that Swindon ever really tested Ben Williams’ grip on the club’s clean sheet record.

The City keeper did not touch the ball for the first 16 minutes – and then only to deal with a back pass.

By half an hour he had doubled that count from a goal kick but there was just one proper save all afternoon when he clutched a long-range attempt by Jermaine Hylton.

City had set off at a good pace and took control early, although their lead owed plenty to weak defending.

Nathan Clarke bagged a third assist in four games when his long throw-in was criminally allowed to bounce in the Swindon penalty area.

Billy Clarke reacted with a looping header which keeper Ty Belford struggled to keep out under pressure from Lee Evans.

Swindon tried to play on but the well-placed assistant referee was in no doubt it had crossed the line and Clarke had scored his first goal since mid-November.

And that was it as City homed in on their tenth 1-0 win and fourth in a row since the last defeat at Wigan. Certainly not pretty, but pretty effective nonetheless.

Jamie Proctor had the best chance to increase the lead just before half-time but headed straight downwards with a stooping attempt from Kyel Reid’s cross.

Swindon, minus their best strikers, then decided to play without any at all as Williams switched to a trendy “false number nine” set-up for the second half.

Lining up with two wingers, two wing backs but no centre forward – Michael Doughty played as the middle man but in a deep role – they tried to confuse a previously-bored home back four.

City’s centre halves found themselves with nobody to mark as Swindon stocked up numbers out wide.

The Baldrick-style “cunning plan” might have worked if Swindon had actually created anything.

But the only time they did nine minutes from time, an expressionless official refused to entertain Brophy’s protests.

And with that, another three points were in the bank as City continue to grind their way towards a potentially spectacular finale.

REFEREE: David Coote (Nottingham)

BOOKINGS: Burke, Evans (City); Barry, Turnbull (Swindon)

ATTENDANCE: 18,043

Shots on target: City 6, Swindon 2

Shots off target: City 4, Swindon 6

Corners: City 6, Swindon 3

Fouls committed: City 20, Swindon 13