Seven games into the League One season and Bradford City find themselves at the summit of the table, having usurped Sheffield Wednesday following last weekend's win at Luton Town. It is, on the face of it, a remarkable position for a club that suffered back-to-back defeats earlier in the campaign and found themselves being quietly written off by those who assumed their fast start was little more than a mirage.

The numbers, though, are fairly persuasive. Seven goals scored in seven games is not a figure that will frighten any defence in the division. Four goals conceded, however, is another matter entirely. The Bantams have the joint-best defensive record in the whole of the EFL, not simply League One, and that is a statistic that deserves to be repeated slowly. Of the 72 clubs in the top four tiers, only one other side has been as difficult to score against.

BBC Final Score pundit Aaron McLean, a former striker who spent time at Peterborough United and Hull City, offered his assessment of Bradford's start at the weekend. "Bradford are a massive club," he said, "you only have to listen to the noise they make at Valley Parade and the support they get." His broader point was that Graham Alexander is a manager operating in the right environment, one that suits the way he works and the kind of culture he appears to be building at the club.

McLean was particularly struck by what he called the side's "bouncebackability." Bradford won their opening two fixtures, then dropped points in back-to-back games, a sequence that prompted the predictable questions about whether the early form was sustainable. The answer, so far, has been a firm three wins on the bounce. It is a short run, and four games is four games, but the pattern of response rather than retreat suggests something more embedded than a lucky start.

The obvious caveat, and McLean was candid enough to state it plainly, is that seven goals in seven matches is not a scoring rate that will carry a side through a 46-game season. At some point the forwards will need to convert more of what comes their way. McLean's expectation is that the conversion rate will improve, and he was effusive about young striker Bobby Pointon, whom he tipped as one of the best strikers in the division over the coming seasons. Whether Pointon develops quickly enough to ease the goal burden this campaign remains to be seen.

For now, the defensive solidity has covered the shortfall. Alexander's side have shown that when they do take the lead, they know how to protect it. The clean sheets and narrow wins suggest a team that is organised from front to back rather than merely relying on a resolute back four, and that kind of structural discipline tends to hold up over a longer run of fixtures better than a side dependent on individual brilliance.

There is also a subplot worth noting. Alexander's name has been linked, predictably given his history at Deepdale as a player, with the managerial vacancy at Preston North End. McLean's view was that the Bradford job is exactly where Alexander should remain, and there is logic to that argument. Alexander has built something at Valley Parade that is still in its early stages. Leaving now, for a club in a different division with a different set of expectations, would carry considerable risk on both sides.

Bradford's fixture list will, in time, tell us more than any individual performance can. What the opening seven games have established is that this is a side capable of grinding out results when the goals do not flow, and capable of recovering when they stumble. In a division as relentlessly competitive as League One, those two qualities are worth rather more than a flashy goal difference.

Top of the table is a pleasant place to be in September. Whether it means anything come April is the question that matters.

Frequently asked

Why are Bradford City top of League One?
Bradford City lead League One after seven games thanks to the joint-best defensive record in the entire EFL, having conceded only four goals. A run of three consecutive wins, including victory at Luton Town, lifted them above Sheffield Wednesday at the top of the table.
Is Graham Alexander leaving Bradford for Preston?
Alexander has been linked with the Preston North End managerial vacancy, but there is no confirmed approach or departure. BBC pundit Aaron McLean suggested Alexander is in the right place at Bradford and should stay at Valley Parade.
How many goals have Bradford scored this season?
Bradford have scored seven goals in their first seven League One games this season. While their attacking output is modest, their defence has conceded just four, making them one of the hardest sides to score against in the EFL.