YORK City Knights boss James Ford says his team will not do anything any differently now they are top of the league.

The Knights blew away arch-rivals Hunslet 48-6 at Bootham Crescent and, to add to the fans' delight, then learned Betfred League One leaders and title favourites Bradford Bulls had lost 24-18 at home to Workington Town.

The two results saw a buoyant York go two points clear of the former World Club champions in the two-horse race for the sole automatic promotion spot to the Championship, with four games left.

However, York's next assignment is a trip to third-placed Workington and they also have to face play-off-chasing Oldham and Whitehaven, and Ford knows big hurdles have to be overcome before the championship is decided.

"Nobody gets promoted with four games to go. We need to keep doing what we're doing, working hard and trying to improve," he said.

"We will enjoy this win then prepare for what will be a really tough challenge at Workington.

"I'm confident this team will turn up for training and continue working hard and trying to get better."

Asked if he expected Worky to shock Bradford at Odsal - completing a league double over the Bulls - Ford said: "They're a quality side and are third for a reason.

"I can't say if it surprises me because I've not been thinking about Bradford's games. I've just been thinking about us being as good as we can be every week on the field."

He added: "We can't influence what other teams do so we're not going to worry about that.

"We're just going to carry on focusing on ourselves and carry on taking it one game at a time.

"Regardless of what anyone else does, we have to keep winning.

"To beat a side like Hunslet like that is a huge achievement. Defensively we were outstanding as Hunslet can play.

"A few times I thought we were harshly done to with some refereeing calls - the penalty count was something like 8-1 or 8-2 in the second half I think, which was bizarre given what was going on on the pitch.

"But I've said it before - this team has so much resilience and character and just make effort on effort, set after set.

"Teams that win championships are rarely the flashiest sides but the hardest-working sides that grind out wins when they need to."

Ford pointed out York had shown time and again this year how they can repel opposition in the face of growing pressure.

"Defensively we were really good and parts of our attacking performance were excellent," he said of this latest showing - an 11th straight win.

"There were maybe too many errors when we lost a bit of patience and that gifted Hunslet some opportunities, and we also had to defend plenty of penalties - but we've had plenty of practice at that this year."

Asked if he expected such a one-sided scoreline, Ford said: "No, we have a lot of respect for teams in League One and a lot of respect for Hunslet, their club, their fans and their coach.

"We were prepared for a really tight game but the scoreline has blown out a little bit and probably doesn't reflect Hunslet's efforts."

With no game next weekend due to rugby league's Challenge Cup final at Wembley, the Knights are being given this full week off, before returning to training a week on Tuesday.

Ford reckons it comes at a good time, too, with conditioning stats suggesting a number of players needed a break.

"It's tough to manage players' mental loads as well as physical loads," he explained. "We've been at it since November. We'll have time off and the players will hopefully enjoy that on the back of a great performance and us sitting at the top of the league."