The international break has been and gone, and now it's back to the real nitty gritty with only six games to go in the regular Championship season.

It's amazing how quickly time flies when you're having fun, and it seems amazing to think that there will only be two more away games after this trip to Bristol City, though the target in this final push is to try and double that number, with a Play-Off run all the way to Wembley in mind as the balmy temperatures arrive from warmer shores.

There's a confident glow about Preston as they travel south on the relatively straightforward M6/M5 route, but they know that this will be a big contest in the context of the run-in. North End lie just two points off the Play-Offs, meaning the top six is still well within our grasp, but with the current incumbents of that position, Cardiff City, holding two games in hand, the chasers know that points are needed on a consistent basis to stay in touch.

Bristol City are a mere three points behind PNE with a superior goal difference, so avoiding defeat will be seen as a key aspiration to fend them off for a further period. City are ninth, with Swansea City sitting between the two in eighth. Barring a miracle, it looks as though that trio, plus coat-tail straddlers Ipswich and QPR, are the only likely remaining candidates to break back into the Play-Off showdown.

This televised tie will no doubt be billed as a 'knockout encounter' by the Sky pundits as they look to hype up the events on the field, and it should prove a very good test of the two sides' capabilities when it comes to performing under the end of season pressure.



THE MANAGER - Gary Johnson
Newmarket Town, Cambridge United, Kettering Town, Latvia, Yeovil Town, Bristol City. That's the highly unusual but hugely successful managerial career path enjoyed by current Ashton Gate boss Gary Johnson, who is currently hoping to reach the top flight at only the second time of asking after a remarkable rise through the divisions.

Starting out in the League game as reserve team boss at Cambridge, he later stepped into the position of John Beck's number two as the pair helped to transform the club from a standard fourth division outfit to near Premiership credibles. Johnson took over the reigns as first team boss after Beck left to work his way to Deepdale, and though he didn't make too many headlines in his first few senior appointments, he helped to raise eyebrows with his work as Latvian national coach, and later had the west country raising glasses after taking Yeovil from the Conference to League One via the FA Trophy final in successive promotions.

He turned down an approach from Derby whilst at Huish Park, but didn't have too far to move when the offer came in for him to move to divisional and local rivals Bristol City. The near neighbours weren't league-mates for long, with Johnson taking City up as runners up in 2006/07, and they were only denied a place in the Premier League at the conclusion of last season when they were defeated by another surprise package, Hull City.

Johnson knows what his side needs in order to propel themselves into what could well be the last remaining Play-Off place - support. Ahead of the crunch game with PNE, he told Virgin Media:

"We are now into a massive part of the season and the fans will play a big part in that. Strong, positive support will only help put the team in a stronger mental state to cope with the pressures that exist at this stage of the campaign.

"I'd ask as many people as possible to come along to support the lads on Saturday in what is another `cup final' for us. The Ashton Gate atmosphere has been rising since the start of the season and has grown into a crescendo as we reach the final stretch. That can only work in our favour and I'd like to thank our loyal fans in anticipation of that support."

LAST MATCH - QPR 2 Bristol City 1 (Lopez 65, Taarabt 81; McIndoe 77)
The battle of the Play-Off hopefuls went the way of the big-spending Londoners as on loan Spurs star Adel Taarabt stole the points in a game that burst into life in the final half hour.

The contest was a largely midfield-based battle, dominated by a succession of long shots and good stops from visiting keeper Adriano Basso, until Jordi Lopez curled in a stunning free kick from 25 yards.

Michael McIndoe hoped to have wrestled a point from the outing when he scored from ten yards late on, but Taarabt won it in the final ten minutes with a close range finish.

"Of course I'm disappointed with the outcome- we didn't do ourselves justice," admitted City boss Gary Johnson.

QPR: Cerny, Delaney, Connolly (Helguson 61), Ramage, Gorkss, Leigertwood, Lopez, Alberti (Routledge 46), Ephraim, Taarabt, Di Carmine (Cook 73). Subs Not Used: Mahon, Vine.

Bristol City: Basso, Orr, McAllister, Fontaine, McCombe, McIndoe, Skuse, Sproule (Styvar 86), Johnson (Elliott 86), Adebola, Maynard. Subs Not Used: Henderson, James Wilson, John.



LATEST NEWS - Five From Six Will Do
Bristol City chairman Steve Lansdown has told Western Daily Press that he believes his side need to win five of their last six games to have a chance of making the play- offs.

Following the international break, City resume action on Saturday when they host fellow top six contenders Preston North End at Ashton Gate.

However, the Robins' chief accepts that City's last outing, a 2- 1 defeat at QPR, has damaged those hopes.

Lansdown said: "It is still on but it is more of a long shot than we would want it to be. We know what we have got to do. We have got to win five games to have a chance. It makes the Preston game on Saturday very important. We talk about cup finals but the remaining games really are.

"It isn't quite must win but if we didn't win it we would be in a position where we couldn't afford not to win the last five."

KIT NEWS
PNE will appear in their home strip at Ashton Gate.

COMMENTARY
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