Rubin Colwill struck twice in three first-half minutes as Cardiff City won 4-0 at Exeter City in their bid for for automatic promotion from League One.

The hosts barely threatened the Bluebirds as they continue to hover dangerously close to the relegation zone at the other end of the table.

Colwill lashed in his opener from a standing start and headed in his second - a rare such effort for him - as Brian Barry-Murphy's side took firm control at St James' Park.

Alex Robertson added the third, finishing a team move from deep with a superb finish from outside the box, his last contribution before making way for David Turnbull in the 71st minute.

Sonny Cox rattled the woodwork for the hosts in a rare moment of jeopardy for Cardiff.

But there was no mistake at the other end as Callum Robinson guided in his effort from close range.

It was a welcome return to winning ways for Cardiff after losing at home against leaders Lincoln City last weekend and drawing at Barnsley in midweek.

But for interim Exeter City boss Matt Taylor it was perhaps another reminder of the reasons for his pre-match call to his players to shake off their "soft" tag.

The encounter was played at walking pace during some periods of the second half with Cardiff in control and the hosts largely unable to make inroads.

Barry-Murphy's men ended the day four points adrift of Lincoln and 11 points clear of third-place Bolton Wanderers while the Grecians dropped two spots to 18th and remain four points above the relegation zone.

Cardiff boss Brian Barry-Murphy: "I'm really just so grateful for the players that they remained so focused on playing our way, the Cardiff City way, and I suppose not showing any signs of going away from that in spite of what can be disappointing.

"I'm so grateful for the players and the mentality and character that they show every single day. We trained brilliantly on Thursday after a long trip back from Barnsley. All the feelings were right and you can't count how you're going to come here and win.

"All these games are very difficult and Exeter has always been a tough ground for away teams. But today we were really worthy winners."

Defeat for Exeter stretched their winless run to 11 games and they sit just four points above the relegation zone.

Interim Exeter boss Matt Taylor: "I thought the start was OK. We were competitive and played a certain type of game to start off with and then, all of a sudden, it seemed to quickly go away from us.

"We changed shape to get through the end of the first half but it didn't make much difference. We know we can perform a lot better than that. They managed us so well and we didn't make three or four passes with any quality in that first hour.

"There were some quality finishes in there and we didn't shift across the pitch quickly enough to close down the space. We can congratulate the opposition, but we are frustrated and disappointed because we know we can play so much better than what we did.