Nahki Wells grabbed his second goal of the season as Bristol City maintained their perfect record in the Sky Bet Championship with a hard-fought 2-1 win away to Nottingham Forest.

The league leaders found themselves 2-0 ahead after just 22 minutes with Andreas Weimann opening the scoring in the twelfth minute with a well-placed finish, before Wells doubled the advantage just ten minutes later.

Reminiscent of his first goal of the season in the 2-0 victory over Stoke City, the Bermuda striker found himself in the right spot to receive a cushioned Chris Martin knock-down before executing a difficult finish, lashing home a half-volley past Brice Samba.

However, their advantage was halved before the interval as Luke Freeman fired home a brilliant, 25-yard strike against his former club to give Forest renewed hope.

The goal swung momentum completely in the home side’s favour, with City thankful for goalkeeper Daniel Bentley, who was in inspired form as he produced a string of fine saves to preserve their lead.

Having already tipped a Alex Mighten header against the bar, the 27-year-old then thwarted Jack Colback and Lyle Taylor from point-blank range.

Arguably his best save came from Cyrus Christie’s long-range shot, which appeared destined for the top corner before Bentley somehow diverted it over with a one-handed stop.

In all, Forest mustered 21 attempts on goal, 13 of which came during a one-sided second half, but ultimately they were unable to beat Bentley.

Bristol City manager Dean Holden, whose side sit top of the table on goals scored, with Reading the only other second-tier team boasting a perfect start, singled out the heroics of his goalkeeper for ensuring his side made out four wins from four.

“We got two very good goals again, then we switched off a little bit and the momentum of the game changed,” Holden said to the Bristol City website. “At 2-1 we knew what they would throw at us in the second half, so we had to stand up to it and we did, to be fair.

“Four wins from four is a tough ask in any division and the players are giving everything. Dan Bentley was incredible in the second half; some of the saves he made were big saves.

“Every single thing Forest threw at us, we managed to get ourselves in the way, and I’m really pleased it happened like that because in any successful season, there’s going to be times like that.”

Meanwhile, Dale Eve and Justin Donawa were both involved in FA Cup second-round qualifying action, helping Spennymoor Town and Darlington Town progress to the next round respectively.

Spennymoor were forced to battle back from a goal down before ultimately prevailing in a 3-1 victory over Bradford Park Avenue, while Donawa’s Darlington had to rely on penalties to overcome Prescot Cables, winning 5-4 after the match had ended 2-2.

Elsewhere, there was disappointment for Knory Scott and Hasting United, who were knocked out of the competition, going down 4-1 on penalties against Ebbsfleet United after the match finished 2-2, while D’Andre Wainwright’s Durham City suffered a heavy 6-0 defeat away to Redcar Athletic in the Northern League Division Two. The result leaves Durham rooted to the foot of the table, having taken just one point from their opening seven fixtures.