Bristol City have proved v Southampton and QPR that they are still a way off the Premier League: View | OneFootball

On 13th February, Bristol City fans will have left Ashton Gate feeling optimistic that this could finally be the year their side reaches the play-offs after the Robins defeated automatic promotion hopefuls Southampton 3-1.

Liam Manning's men found themselves 3-0 up that night thanks to second-half strikes from Sam Bell, Rob Dickie and Harry Cornick, while the Saints could only muster a consolation goal in the 95th minute as Adam Armstrong scored from the penalty spot.

The Robins faithful will have been delighted by the show their side put on against the Saints, and at the very least, would have expected the West Country outfit to follow up the win with a positive result against QPR last Saturday.

However, much to the disappointment of their fans, the Robins fell to a 1-0 home defeat at the hands of the relegation-threatened West Londoners as Ilias Chair's goal was enough to secure a win for the away side.

Manning's men will hope to avoid the same fate when they head to relegation battlers Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday, not least because they will want to take some positive momentum into the Severnside Derby clash with Cardiff City, which takes place on Saturday 2nd March.

The Robins are too inconsistent to land a play-off spot this season

On their day, Manning's men are a top-quality side and can defeat some of the best teams in the Championship, as shown in their recent victory over Russell Martin's Saints.

The West Country men also showed their class in the FA Cup as they defeated Premier League side West Ham United in the third round replay, and only fell to defeat against top-flight Nottingham Forest via a penalty shootout in the fourth round replay.

But defeats such as the one against QPR show that the Robins cannot produce their best performances on a week-in, week-out basis, and often struggle to put the poorer teams in the division away, which ultimately means they will not get their hands on a top-six spot.

This sort of inconsistency is the reason why the Robins currently occupy a mid-table spot and have not pushed themselves nearer to the top six.

One of this season's top-six contenders are Coventry City, who not only have the experience of reaching last season's play-off final, they have also managed a run of just one defeat in their last 17 games in all competitions, which is the sort of consistency which is likely to see Mark Robins' men secure a play-off spot, and the sort of form Manning's side simply cannot match at present.

The future is still bright for the Robins

Although the Ashton Gate outfit appear unlikely to secure their place in the Championship play-offs this season, that does not mean they are not capable of doing so in the years to come.

In Manning, the Robins have a young manager who impressed at his previous club, Oxford United, and who is nurturing his current side's young talent such as Tommy Conway and Bell.

In January, the Robins signed yet more young talent in the form of Max Bird and Josh Stokes, who will arrive in Bristol in the summer following loan moves back to their previous clubs, Derby County and Aldershot Town respectively.

The Robins are likely to make yet more additions once the summer transfer window opens, and if they have a good window, then perhaps next season they can mount a more serious play-off challenge.

But as far as the 2023/24 Championship campaign is concerned, the Robins will not obtain a play-off spot unless they can string the sort of winning run together that we have not yet seen from them.