City 4, Chesham United 0

THE Phil Parkinson era at City has witnessed some extraordinary cup results. But Valley Parade yesterday was not one of them – and the Bantams will be happy with that.

The visit of the lowest-ranked side they have come up against in Parkinson's time did not produce an avalanche of goals likely to threaten the club's 1937 record of 11-3.

More importantly, though, there were no heart-in-mouth moments as Chesham could not rescale the heights they hit in the previous round to knock out Bristol Rovers.

So their long-standing boss Andy Leese will not be heading into early retirement as he had jokingly promised his players if they pulled off another upset.

Instead he will be preparing for tomorrow's trip to the somewhat less grandiose surrounds of Bedworth United as they try to steady a Southern Premier League campaign that has been understandably derailed by the FA Cup excitement.

But there was no embarrassment for the minnows; far from it. Helped by some patchy finishing from the home side, they could leave West Yorkshire with heads high – the two late goals adding a cruel dimension to the final score.

There were four divisions and 104 places separating the sides. To put it in perspective, that's the equivalent of Guiseley facing Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Chesham usually average home gates of just 276 but there was double that number who had made the trip up from Buckinghamshire for their biggest FA Cup tie since reaching the third round in 1980.

Parkinson gave the Generals full respect by naming a very strong team, which included centre half Reece Burke for the first time since the FA Cup opener at Aldershot.

City's game plan was clearly to work the ball quickly and stretch the pitch to drain the energy from the part-timers.

Billy Knott found space for an early drive from 25 yards but Chesham were game going forward and Ryan Blake, their hero in Bristol, shot over after being set up by strike partner Brad Wadkins.

Tony McMahon, seeing plenty of the ball on City's right flank, should have hit the target when Knott picked him out unmarked in the corner of the box.

But any hint of home frustration creeping in disappeared midway through the half as Kyel Reid claimed the first goal of his second stint with the club.

The ball broke to the winger just inside the box and he lashed it past keeper Shane Gore with his weaker right foot.

It was Reid's first for over two years since a cross that drifted in against MK Dons in November 2013.

He had looked a bit loose before his goal but immediately tried to repeat the act with a couple of darts down the middle as the Bantams seized control.

City were fuming not to get a penalty in stoppage time at Walsall the week before – and they had another clear case to be aggrieved when skipper Stephen Darby, cutting across the Chesham box, was clipped by Nick Beasant.

But the defender, watched from the stand by FA Cup-winning dad Dave, got away with it as referee Scott Duncan bemused everyone by waving play on.

The one-way traffic continued and James Hanson was denied by a superb save from Gore. Hanson met McMahon's corner with a thumping header but the Chesham keeper plunged low to his left to turn it away.

Burke headed over from a McMahon free-kick, while Lee Evans and Billy Clarke combined effectively to open up the defence before the Irishman snatched at his volley.

A second goal was beckoning and duly arrived just before the break, created by a peach of a pass by Evans from just inside his own half.

The on-loan Welshman's perfectly-weighted ball released Hanson and he drilled a low finish beyond the keeper – another right-footed goal from a left-footed player.

Chesham were struggling to keep pace with their hosts but were nearly gifted a freak way back into the contest straight after the restart.

Rory McArdle undersold Ben Williams with a backpass, allowing Blake to close down the keeper's clearance. The ball deflected off the striker and rebounded a yard wide of the unguarded net.

Evans and Hanson then looked to repeat their earlier combo, with the Welshman delivering another raking pass over the Chesham back four. But Hanson, this time on his left side, could not keep his angled drive down.

Reid then set up Clarke for a header that flashed just past the near post as the Kop prepared to celebrate. And Chesham coughed the ball up again just outside their own box, allowing Knott the space for a drive over the bar.

Burke looked to join the fun as he rumbled forward with a 30-yard effort that deflected awkwardly to test Gore.

Chesham threw on veteran Barry Hayles, the oldest player in the competition, before their first corner of the afternoon. Williams punched it out through a crowd of players and Sam Youngs sent it straight back with interest, his 25-yard blast flying just a fraction too high.

City's shot count continued to stack up but their radar was off. This time it was Clarke picking up the ball 20 yards out and chipping it over.

Parkinson swapped Clarke and Reid for Devante Cole and Mark Marshall but it was Chesham sub Dave Pearce who tried for a late hurrah. He weaved his way inside from the left before sending an angled effort past the far post.

Williams had still not had a shot to save but Chesham were determined to give it a go in the closing stages.

Blake finally called the City stopper into action when he latched on to a long ball inside the box but Williams was alert and straight out to close him down and block the attempt.

City put some gloss on the result with a double in the three minutes of stoppage time.

Both came from McMahon assists, that regular production line in recent weeks. First Gary Liddle rammed home a corner and then Cole converted the midfielder's cross with a cheeky flick.

The Bantams' job was done with the minimum of fuss and they can dream of potentially rich pickings from tonight's third-round draw.

Attendance: 6,047