City overcame a poor Bedford team thanks to goals that ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous and in doing so secured their ninth point from the last three matches. If ever a game had all the elements of the good, the bad and the ugly then this was the one.

The Lilywhites set out as if they wanted to win the game in the first ten minutes, such was the pace and penetration they displayed in the opening exchanges. Neil Midgley’s eagerness helped him secure the ball and find Tony Burke on the right with just seconds on the clock. The winger wriggled his way behind the defence and pulled back for John Kennedy to try his luck, his blocked shot spinning to skipper Adrian Cambridge who smashed the ball home for his second in as many games.

Just minutes later it looked likely that City would double their lead when Graham Clark upended Kennedy in the box, referee Carl Fitch immediately pointing to the spot. Midgley stepped up, hit his shot high and keeper, Mike Armitt, did well to finger tip it over for a corner. As it happened, this was probably the keeper’s last positive action of the afternoon. The next 85 minutes were to prove to be a torrid and not altogether enjoyable experience for him.

What happened next was a bizarre sequence of events that left the crowd and players somewhat bemused. On seven minutes Dave Theobald challenged Armitt to a cross, the keeper falling and remaining grounded as if he’d been taken out by a sniper in the stands. The challenge looked relatively innocuous yet was enough to stir the blood of Bedford's Jon Darby, who pushed Theobald to the ground. So we now have a stricken keeper, Theobald pushed on the floor, an assistant referee on the field and Darby presumably on the receiving end of a red card. But football is, as I believe has been mentioned once before, a funny old game so it was only natural that the Bedford number 4 joined Theobald in the book. Theobald’s challenge left Armitt unable to take any dead ball kicks from there on in.

He was, however, able to hold on to Burkes shot on 14 when the wide man turned well and poked in a shot at the near post and was on hand to see Jamie Barker’s 24th minute streak past his post.

26 minutes in and Bedford had hardly had a meaningful kick in the City half. This was all to change, however, when Graham Clark won a thumping challenge in midfield and ran straight at the City defence. Sensing his moment he unleashed a very acceptable drive from 25 yards that beat Barrett to level the scores.

The goal took the wind out of City’s sails for a while and other than a scrambling save to deny Theobald’s header, Armitt had a relatively quiet time for the rest of the 45. However, it was the first 45 minutes that proved to be his problem: it was in time added on that his cruel comedy moment occurred.

As the half drew to a close, a hopeful long ball from City found Eddie Lawley. Perhaps he was slightly put off by not having a City player to pull back or niggle, but for whatever reason he had plenty of time to play the ball, electing to push it back to his keeper. Midgley made a routine chase but was still some yards away when the ball reached Armitt who carefully lined up his kick, drew back his foot…and missed the ball. It gently skipped past him at a glacial pace towards the net. Perhaps he could recover and clear? Or perhaps he could stand and wave it into the net. Ah, that was his preferred option. 2-1 to City and as bad a mistake as you’ll ever want to see.

If City’s second goal was bad then Fuller’s decisive goal on 57 definitely qualifies in the good category. The bare fact is that he shot home from close range. What made it exceptional was the angle from which he made his strike. From the stands it appeared that Fuller was almost on the bye line when he shaped and shot - surely there was no angle with which to work? But a nanosecond later the bulging net proved that there was and in the blink of an eye City looked out of sight.

Just five minutes later the fourth goal arrived. Burke beat the keeper in a one-to-one and managed to poke his shot towards goal. Lawley's clearance was retreived by Burke who crossed for Fuller to volley at goal, but he drove his shot straight into the turf, the ball kicking up like a fast bowler’s bouncer. Barker was on hand to flick his header home and the game was well and truly closed out.

As it happened, there was another goal left in the game. Substitute Milton Elenge was adjudged to have committed a foul 30 yards out; Phil Draycott stepped up and drove home into the right hand side of the net for a late consolation.

So there’s the Good and the Bad. What of the Ugly? As a team that are struggling at the bottom of the table Bedford were short on skill and creativity but had - er - a ‘combative’ streak a mile wide. But quite how Mr Lawley managed to escape a yellow with his persistent shirt pulling and tugging back is a mystery. It wasn’t very pretty.

However, seven goals in two games come as an enormous relief following the drought of recent weeks and nine points from nine put the Lilywhites back into the top five. The games are now going to come thick and fast - not that it’s been that leisurely of late - so fingers crossed for a injury-free and healthy squad.