Miserly defence at the Vicarage helps Hornets maintain that winning home streak

Watford (0) 1 Andrews 53

Bristol City (0) 0

The Hornets sure do love their home patch.

They weren't too spectacular, but not for the first time, found that one goal was enough to get the job done - keeping them on the margins of those all-important top six places.

Travelling fans have not had tons to cheer - apart from that mauling of Sheffield Wednesday and the opening day triumph at Millwall - but there is just no stopping them at the Vicarage.

Make that seven wins and a draw now in their opening eight games in Herts. And with rock-bottom QPR to come on Saturday lunchtime, there is every chance that they can rattle up another trio of points.

The stats may be unflattering when it comes to away games, where they have conceded 20 - more than anyone else in the Championship - but at home they have only let in four and it's laying the foundations.

They were indebted to skipper Dan Bachmann for this win - and the crossbar which came to the rescue late on after sub Scott Twine had arced a ball beyond the keeper.

Bachmann made several crucial stops when City were on top and Ryan Porteous also enjoyed the muck and nettles involved in keeping another clean sheet - their fifth at home in the league.

Just under a year ago, the Robins thrashed Watford 4-1 in a Boxing Day horror show for the hosts. This time, only three of those starters were in the line-up at kick-off - a sign of how much Tom Cleverley has transformed the make-up and the fortunes of this team.

In a slow burner of a first half, 15 minutes had elapsed before Watford had any sort of serious shot - Giorgi Chakvetadze volleying just too wide from outside the box. They might have done better with a move from the left that ended with Vakoun Bayo lifting his shot too high.

For the Robins, their popular Japanese wing-back Yu Hirakawa stung the palms of Bachmann with a low shot after cutting in from the flank and the keeper was also called into action to deny Nahki Wells - the former QPR striker dithering too much after being slipped through into an area from which he should have profited.

The Hornets stopper then did really well to stop a close-range header from Luke McNally.

Bachmann underlined that this was his night when he sprang low to keep out a ball arrowing inside his right hand post from a corner early in the second half. It proved a turning point.

Cleverley introduced Moussa Sissoko at the break in place of Kwando Baah to shore a midfield often overrun in the first 45 and the extra ballast in the middle gave Watford a more solid look.

And they found themselves ahead when Chakvetadze was given room to spread a ball out to the right for Ryan Andrews to angle into the net off the far post.

There was a scare for Watford when Francisco Sierralta brought down Wells on the edge of the box. Having already picked up a yellow for a similar foul on Max Bird, there was plenty of pleading going on from yellow shirts surrounding ref James Linington.

The Chilean was quickly replaced by James Morris by the Watford boss - who was mindful that his defender was walking a tightrope.

It was all about small margins, but they once again went the right way as far as Hornets fans were concerned.

Hornets: (3-4-3) Bachmann - Porteous, Pollock, Sierralta (Morris 65) - Andrews, Louza, Kayembe (Ince 83), Ebosele (Larouci 60) - Baah (Sissoko h/t), Bayo (Doumbia 83), Chakvetadze

Robins: (3-4-3) O'Leary - Vyner, Dickie, McNally - Hirakawa (Roberts 60), McGuane, Knight, Pring - Bird (Earthy 79), Wells (Mayulu 71), Mehmeti (Twine 71)