The tone for the home side was set early with a header from captain Rob Dickie in the open exchanges giving the Robins the lead.
Prospective new head coach Vitor Matos watching from the stands would have taken heart with the Swans response with Liam Cullen and Adam Idah and Etan Galbraith having chances to equalise.
But the Swans would be passive and defensively sloppy as they fell further behind after half an hour, with forward Emil Riis sneaking in at the back post to volley in from chief tormentor Anis Mehmeti’s deep cross.
Adam Idah and Josh Key had chances to reduce the arears in the second half, but errors at the back would be the Swans main undoing as the game was put to bed with ten minutes to go. Albanian international Mehmeti’s superb turn and pass freeing Japanese forward Yu Hirakawa to run clear and finish neatly to score his first, and a decisive third for Bristol City.
The Swans had come into the game without injured captain Ben Cabango and influential full back Josh Tyson. Both suspended and unavailable for interim boss Darren O’Dea.
The Irishman would made six changes with Eom Ji-sung, Cullen, Kaelan Casey, Ishe Samuels-Smith earning starts, whilst Marko Stamenic would return after a month away from the club following the death of his father. Deadline day signing Idah would be charged with finishing duties, preferred to top scorer Zan Vipotnik up front.
Hours before kick-off Portuguese club Maritimo announced that head coach Matos was leaving them to take charge of Swansea. He was in the stands as his new team came under concerted early pressure.
Mehmeti fired narrowly wide before his third-minute shot was saved by Lawrence Vigouroux to concede the corner that led to Dickie’s goal. But Swansea weathered the storm and threatened themselves for the first time on 16 minutes when Cullen’s shot was turned around a post by Radek Vitek.
The Bristol City goalkeeper was in action again on 27 minutes, reacting well to parry Idah’s fierce drive. At the other end Sinclair Armstrong had a shot cleared off the line before Riis made it 2-0 from the narrowest of angles.
Cullen shot over from a good Swansea chance and Riis fired over for Bristol before Vitek produced the best save of the first half to keep out Ronald’s low effort from inside the box.
The Swans started the second half well and Vitek had to make another save to keep out Galbraith’s low shot from distance, before Bristol City defender George Tanner would produce an important block to deny Eom.
Vigouroux would be busy, and then kept his side in the game with an outstanding low save from Armstrong’s shot.
Substitute Franco soon shot narrowly wide for the Swans as they continued to fight hard, but Bristol City responded with Armstrong firing over from 25 yards, before Hirakowa’s goal ended any doubts about the outcome.
The Robins now move to fourth in the Championship table after their first win in four. whilst the Swans, drop to 19th with just one win in their last eight league outings.
Swansea City X1: Lawrence Vigouroux, Josh Key (Jay Fulton 77), Marko Stamenic (Goncalo Franco 65), Jisung Eom (Zeidane Inoussa 65), Cameron Burgess (captain), Ishe Samuels-Smith (Ricardo Santos 68), Liam Cullen (Zan Vipotnik 65), Kaelan Casey, Ethan Galbraith, Adam Idah, Ronald.
Bristol City X1: Radek Vitek, Ross McCrorie (Mark Sykes 58), Adam Randell, Scott Twine (Yu Hirakawa 71), Anis Mehmeti, Zak Vyner, Rob Dickie (captain), Emil Riis (Jason Knight 58), George Tanner, Neto Borges (Haydon Roberts 72), Sinclair Armstrong (Fally Mayulu 84)
[Lead image: Bristol City FC]
