Bristol City 0-2 Cardiff City: Bluebirds end winless run

Cardiff striker Kieffer Moore has scored 11 goals in 23 Championship appearances this season

Cardiff City ended their longest run without a league win in five years, as headers from Curtis Nelson and Kieffer Moore saw them win 2-0 at Bristol City.

The Bluebirds crossed the Severn Bridge without a victory in seven games but were good value as Mick McCarthy earned his first three points as Cardiff boss.

Nelson headed home from Harry Wilson's free-kick, before Moore converted after Sheyi Ojo's precise cross.

Bristol City had plenty of possession but Cardiff were never really troubled.

The win sees Cardiff rise to 14th in the Championship, while Bristol City fall to 10th.

The Welsh side were without deadline-day signing Jonny Williams who was injured in training, but his international team-mate Wilson was recalled as McCarthy sought a first win since replacing Neil Harris.

Henri Lansbury made his Bristol City debut, with Dean Holden's side chasing a fourth consecutive home win for the first time in two years, but they were without Owura Edwards after he came into contact with someone with coronavirus.

The contest was marred early in the first half by worrying scenes when Cardiff goalkeeper Alex Smithies indicated to the referee that he was feeling unwell, with a stoppage of eight minutes as he was tended to by paramedics as a precaution.

Smithies had his blood pressure tested before leaving the field sat upright on a stretcher, with manager McCarthy saying after the match that the player was feeling better, having left the field "feeling ill, feeling sick".

"Alex looked really ill when he came off and to watch him leave on a stretcher was not good," McCarthy added.

"But I have just seen him sitting up in the dressing room and it doesn't look too bad. We have no idea what the problem was.

"Possibly it is some sort of allergic reaction, but all the lads had the same pre-match meal, so it is hard to know."

Dillon Phillips was sent on for his Cardiff league debut and he was instantly called into action when he was forced to parry Lansbury's dipping free-kick, before the Bluebirds took the lead with their first effort on goal with an effort that was quintessentially Cardiff.

Wilson's free-kick delivery was perfect, allowing Nelson to flick home a header from inside a crowded penalty area on 18 minutes.

It was a great start for a Cardiff side who have fallen behind more often than not this term, but they hit dream territory as they doubled their advantage on 25 minutes when Moore powerfully headed home Ojo's pinpoint cross for his third goal in as many games under McCarthy.

It was a familiar feeling for Bristol City fans, with the Robins losing three of their past four home league games against Cardiff.

Chances for the hosts were at a premium and they saw Famara Diedhiou slip at the vital moment after a nice move found him with time and space to shoot, with most efforts from the hosts blocked by a resolute rearguard display from Cardiff.

The Bluebirds could have stretched their lead before half-time, however, with Daniel Bentley producing a fantastic save to deny Ojo's header after Will Vaulks' cross.

Both sides felt they had a strong penalty claim within 10 minutes of the restart, but referee Jarred Gillett waved away the protests after Aden Flint and Diedhiou felt they had been fouled.

Holden made four substitutions in a bid to change the tone of the contest but Cardiff's shape and discipline meant they protected Phillips - who had little to do other than collect a yellow card for time-wasting - while Moore missed a good late chance to score a second as he fired over the bar after a fine run.

Bristol City boss Dean Holden said:

"I am not going to try to sugar-coat that performance. It wasn't good enough and way off the level we have set.

"I can understand how our supporters will be feeling after a display like that in a derby game and I can assure them there has been some honest talking in the dressing room after the game.

"It would be easy for me to come out and criticise individuals, but we win together and we lose together.

"My job is to ensure we regroup quickly and galvanise the players to get us out of the tricky spell we are in. Overall, it was very disappointing."

Cardiff boss Mick McCarthy said:

"It's a great feeling, not only to have my first victory in charge of Cardiff, but also my first win in the Championship since I was at Ipswich three years ago.

"The lads had to work really hard for it. If you get early goals it makes life easier, but we expected Bristol to respond in the second half and did really well to keep a clean sheet.

"I watched their game at Brentford in midweek and knew they were struggling for a left-sided defender.

"We felt we could hurt them down that side and both the goals came from crosses from our right.

"They were both well-taken. We could feel the bottom end of the table creeping up on us and hopefully this is a step towards sniffing the teams at the other end."

• Nothing is unplayable: Disability and the gaming revolution

• Eating With My Ex: Can they settle the score and go again?