Scott Parker was left frustrated at the late decision that went against his side, but was proud of the application shown by his players.
At 2-1 down, Neeskens Kebano was felled in the area, but no decision was given either way.
“I think the referee’s obviously made a big mistake,” Parker said. “That can happen, human error. That’s when you want VAR in the Championship.
“Standing here you’d want it to go to VAR and I think this time it’s an instant reverse of the decision. It’s one of those things – we dust ourselves off and go again.
“I just felt the game wasn’t in control at times. Jez [Simpson], the ref, who’s got a tough job, obviously he’s making decisions on split calls, and we’re disappointed we’ve not got the penalty late on, and the other little bits here and there are part and parcel really.”
Asked if he thinks VAR should be introduced at Championship level, Parker said: “Tonight I do! It is what it is.
“I just said to the ref, when you come to football matches, you guys [the media] see a lot of football matches every week, the fans do, I played for 20 years and now as a coach, you see instances developing.
“And as that action was developing, that play was developing, as Neeskens got in front of him you see the guy coming across him, I’m thinking ‘you need to look for a penalty here, he’s maybe going to clip the back of his leg.’
“That’s how I see it, but it is what it is. Bristol City got the win today but I’m ultimately proud of my team.
“Three or four weeks ago we lost to Hull here, the stadium cleared out, the fans probably lost a bit of belief in that sense that we couldn’t get back in it. I felt that the players did as well in that game.
“At 2-0 today with 10 minutes left on the clock, every one of my players was in the ascendency. They didn’t give up, they kept going.
“On another day, the one that hits the bar, the decision that’s obviously a penalty, it could turn a different way, and I’m proud of the players for that.”
