Kyel Reid insists he is no diver and would never cheat to win a penalty.

The City winger is still fuming over the yellow card he received for “simulation” against Wolves.

Reid went tumbling after a challenge from keeper Carl Ikeme – but referee Graham Salisbury booked the home player instead of pointing to the spot.

City feel short-changed that they have not been awarded a single penalty this season.

Reid was adamant he should have had another at Gillingham recently when Leon Legge knocked him over.

He is worried that officials might be swayed by seeing that he has been booked for going to ground.

Reid said: “Gareth Bale got a reputation for it at Totten-ham last season and Ashley Young as well.

“But if you get contact, sometimes you can’t help but fall over. If you are off balance and get caught, there’s no way you can stand up.

“I’m not going to try to cheat to help my team. But if I’m in that area and get nudged and feel that I can’t keep my balance, then it’s fair to go down.

“I was in two minds when I ran up to the ball, whether to shoot first time or get round their keeper. Obviously there was going to be contact because of the pace I was going and he was coming out.

“I thought the ref had given the penalty then he booked me. But I’m sure we’ll get one at some point.”

Phil Parkinson called for more protection for City’s flair players in the light of the forearm that Reid received in the head from Tranmere defender Ian Goodison. Reid was also in the wars against Wolves.

He added: “The Goodison thing was a joke. Then (Sam) Ricketts caught me on the cheekbone in the Wolves game and I had to go for an x-ray afterwards to see that it wasn’t fractured or cracked.

“It was the same against Preston. The number of times I got kicked was ridiculous – the next day I woke up and had bruises all over.

“You want the referee to protect you from injuries and fouls. That’s what they are there for.

“Hopefully we can get some decisions that go our way in the next few weeks.

“But maybe the attention I get is a compliment. I know I’ll always have two or three men on me when I get the ball.

“Teams obviously see me and Mezza (James Meredith) as a threat down our side. They will be doing their best to try to stop us.

“You’ve got to have the knowledge to learn what to do off the ball to create space so that when you do receive it, you’ve got time to get at them.

“If you’ve got two on you, there’s always a free man somewhere so it helps the team. Sometimes my presence just on the pitch can help because the opposition is worried about you.”