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Ollie Tanner (centre) has eight assists and one goal in his past seven games Cardiff City outclassed AFC Wimbledon to maintain their four-point lead at the top of League One and extend the gap between themselves and the chasing pack outside the automatic promotion spots. Joe Colwill powered the free-flowing Bluebirds in front with a sweet first-time strike from Alex Robertson's low corner, only for substitute Matty Stevens to equalise in first-half injury time. Cardiff reasserted their dominance with two goals in three second-half minutes. Perry Ng headed in from Ollie Tanner's corner before returning the favour with a pass for Tanner to score with a smart turn and finish. Omari Kellyman added a late fourth as he collected a pass from substitute Callum Robinson and confidently rolled a shot into the bottom corner. Brian Barry-Murphy's side are now unbeaten in 12 games, with this their eighth victory during that time. Second-place Lincoln City kept up their pursuit of the Welsh club by beating Northampton Town, but Bolton Wanderers' draw at Reading means the third-place Trotters are now 12 points adrift of Cardiff. The end of Wimbledon's mini-resurgence of a three-match unbeaten run sees them drop down one position to 16th in the table. Despite the 27 points and 12 league places separating the teams at the start of the game, Bluebirds knew not to take their opponents lightly – not after losing 5-1 against them here in the EFL Trophy in December. However, that was a much-changed Cardiff side and, with an almost entirely different line-up on this occasion, this league encounter bore little resemblance to that cup meeting. The hosts were quickly into their stride, attacking fluently and creating several early chances, the pick of which saw an intricate passing move end with right-back Ng shooting wide. An opening goal for Cardiff already felt inevitable by the time it arrived in the 22nd minute, with Robertson deliberately dragging a low corner to the edge of the penalty area, where Colwill did not need to break stride before lashing the ball in at the near post. Wimbledon's equaliser came against the run of play as Stevens, only on nine minutes, volleyed in unmarked from Steve Seddon's free-kick on the stroke of half-time. That proved to be a mere aberration. Within 16 minutes of the restart, Cardiff were two goals up thanks to Ng's second in as many games and Tanner's instinctive finish. Other than the odd flicker of a threat from the visitors – with Seddon heading against a post late on - the league leaders were in total control, as exemplified by Kellyman's assured finish for their stylish fourth goal. Comments can not be loaded To load Comments you need to enable Java Script in your browser Last Updated 17th February 2026 at 22: 02 Please Note: All times UK. Tables are subject to change. The BBC is not responsible for any changes that may be made. Manager: Brian Barry-Murphy Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Johnnie Jackson Formation: 3 - 5 - 2 Manager: Brian Barry-Murphy Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 Manager: Johnnie Jackson Formation: 3 - 5 - 2 League One All competitions All competitions All competitions Cardiff won their only previous league meeting with AFC Wimbledon back in August. The last London side they did the double over were Brentford in the 2017-18 Championship. AFC Wimbledon won 5-1 at Cardiff in the EFL Trophy earlier this season. The only team they’ve beaten twice on the road in a single campaign as a Football League side are Fleetwood Town in 2018-19. Cardiff are looking to avoid losing multiple home games against the same opponent in a single season for the first time since 2011-12, when they lost twice at home to West Ham. AFC Wimbledon have won just two of their seven Football League away games against Welsh sides (D3 L2), though one of these was their most recent visit against Newport County in January 2025. Match ends, Cardiff City 4, AFC Wimbledon 1. Second Half ends, Cardiff City 4, AFC Wimbledon 1. Attempt missed. Antwoine Hackford (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right following a corner. Corner, AFC Wimbledon. Conceded by Nathan Trott. Attempt saved. Steve Seddon (AFC Wimbledon) header from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner by Nathan Trott (Cardiff City). Assisted by Jake Reeves with a cross. Foul by Callum Robinson (Cardiff City). James Tilley (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick on the right wing. Attempt missed. Zack Nelson (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left following a fast break. Joel Bagan (Cardiff City) wins a free kick on the left wing. Foul by Patrick Bauer (AFC Wimbledon). Substitution, Cardiff City. Calum Scanlon replaces Omari Kellyman. Fourth official has announced 5 minutes of added time. Goal! Cardiff City 4, AFC Wimbledon 1. Omari Kellyman (Cardiff City) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Callum Robinson. Substitution, AFC Wimbledon. Zack Nelson replaces Alistair Smith. Foul by Joel Bagan (Cardiff City). James Tilley (AFC Wimbledon) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Perry Ng (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half. Foul by Junior Nkeng (AFC Wimbledon). Attempt blocked. Junior Nkeng (AFC Wimbledon) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Alistair Smith. Jake Reeves (AFC Wimbledon) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul. Copyright © 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.