Nahki Wells will make another run on the Premier League as Bristol City secured a precious spot in the Sky Bet Championship play-offs on Saturday.

On a dramatic final day in the division, Bristol City went into their final match of the regular season, at home to struggling Preston North End, knowing that victory would guarantee them a play-off place.

But the unpredictability of football was again evident as they could draw only 2-2 with City’s players waiting on the pitch long after the final whistle as matches involving other play-off contenders were still being played.

The nerves were ended only by City supporters, glued to their mobile devices in the stands at Ashton Gate, roaring with delight when they discovered the results of other matches had gone their way.

That sparked celebratory scenes in the middle of the pitch as Wells and his team-mates were mobbed by ecstatic fans.

That mood was in stark contrast to the atmosphere in the ground an hour into the match with City set to crash out of the play-off picture after going two goals down with Preston scoring through Emil Riis Jakobsen and Milutin Osmajic in the 28th and 60th minutes respectively.

It was Wells, who played a major role in reviving City’s chances, providing the assist for Ryan McCrorie to tap in at the back post in the 69th minute. Five minutes later, McCrorie scored his second goal of the game to pull the scores level at 2-2.

Try as they might, City could not find another goal to guarantee themselves a play-off berth and were forced to wait for confirmation that Millwall and Blackburn Rovers, who both could have leapfrogged City with wins, had lost their respective matches.

That left City finishing the season in sixth position and they now face a two-leg play-off semi-final against Sheffield United, with the first leg taking place at Ashton Gate on Thursday at 4pm Bermuda time. The return match takes place at Bramall Lane on Monday, May 12

City coach Liam Manning, who suffered a personal tragedy during the course of the season with the death of his baby son Theo, said in his post-match interview that he had run the gamut of emotions during the match.

“I guess I went through every emotion imaginable over the 90 minutes and those that followed the final whistle when we had to await the finish of games elsewhere,” he said.

“At different times there was frustration and anger with how we were playing. But it was worth all of that to hear the cheer that rang out when our place in the play-offs was confirmed. It will stay with me for ever.

“Our fans have been brilliant. The lap of honour was so emotional for me in view of the difficult year it has been personally and I was close to tears three or four times.

“Celebrating with my family was very special. They and the players and staff have helped me through some tough times. Tonight, I am just looking forward to relaxing with a couple of beers.”

Manning was also quick to praise the players for their resolve and jumped straight back to work on Sunday morning to prepare for the play-offs.

“All season the players have shown the ability to bounce back quickly from setbacks and they did so again today,” he said.

“The culture we have built is one of sticking together and becoming stronger through difficulties. To be honest, I am not giving a thought to facing Sheffield United for the moment. That will all start tomorrow, but of course we have been professional enough to prepare for all eventualities based on today’s results.”