If the Steamers are going to emulate their efforts of the last three years and make the Mitre 10 Cup Championship division semifinals, they're cutting it a bit fine.

Having started the season with a bang, knocking over Premiership outfits Taranaki and Counties Manukau, they've now lost the following five matches on the bounce.

At first it might have looked like a speed-wobble, playing valiantly in going down to reigning top-flight champions Canterbury before losing a single-pointer to Hawkes Bay which could have gone either way.

The wheels then started looking distinctly loose in a flat performance against North Harbour, before coming off completely in a 54-21 hammering from Waikato.

Having fallen outside the top-four playoff positions with four matches remaining Thursday night's encounter with Manawatu in Rotorua – a home match against a team below them on the table – was the perfect opportunity to get back in the groove.

So their 17-15 loss was a particularly painful one.

Perhaps one key stat tells the story of the Steamers' season so far. Of the whole 14 Mitre 10 Cup teams, they are the only one yet to secure a four-try bonus point in any match.

And once again their struggles to get over the tryline on a regular basis were in evidence against Manawatu.

Once they'd recovered their poise from a sucker punch inside the first minute when Turbos' halfback Jamie Booth broke from the base of a ruck and galloped 45 metres through their disorganised defence to score, the Steamers turned on the power and spent the majority of the match on the ascendency.

All they had to show for it though was a single first half penalty to first five-eight Jason Robertson, and two tries which didn't arrive until the final 15 minutes.

Handling errors and penalties, as they had done in the Waikato clash, dealt to their chances of converting hard-won scoring opportunities into points time after time.

Having been pinned back in their own half since their opening try, Manawatu again showed the Steamers how to take an opening when fullback Sam Malcolm finished off a superb long-range passing movement. Aside from a second half penalty it was the visitors' last scoring action, though they were unlucky to have a third try turned down by the TMO who spotted wing Junior Laloifi's foot in touch under a try-saving tackle by replacement fullback Chase Tiatia.

But as it turn out they had enough to get the job done anyway.

Just before halftime the Steamers had a chance to put a new complexion on the match when lock Baden Wardlaw tried to finish off a forward drive and score under a pile of bodies, but was felled short of the line and penalised for a double movement.

It was a prime example of how they made life hard for themselves, a continuing theme throughout the match as they relied heavily on the forwards to bash away at the Manawatu defence with forward drives and passing no further than the first man off the ruck.

The backs, when they did get the ball, looked dangerous, with halfback Richard Judd and wing Bailey Simonsson in particular combining well at times, but all too often good movements came to abrupt ends with passes failing to stick.

Replacement lock Aaron Carroll brought new energy to the team when he came on in the second half, and was rewarded with a battling try when the forwards did finally get a drive right with 12 minutes remaining.

Kaleb Trask, who moved from fullback to first-five and took over the kicking duties following the injury-enforced departure of Jason Robertson, hit the post with his conversion attempt, which may have delivered his team a draw had it been successful.

His next attempt went better though, as Luke Campbell, who'd come on as a midfield back replacement, showed good strength to get over the line on the end of the team's best passing move of the match to set up a grandstand finish. With time running out Trask took the conversion with a drop kick, and slotted it straight down the middle.

Perhaps he should have done the same when he was handed the ball for a penalty attempt from halfway which would have given them an 18-17 win, but either way it was always a longshot, and duly fell short.

It seemed odd that having relied on forward grunt all night, and with their lineout functioning well, they didn't kick for the corner and look to set up a lineout drive.

After the Hawkes Bay loss coach Clayton McMillan's view was that if they got it right they were going to hurt some teams, and the funny thing is that still holds true.

Problem is they are now seriously short of opportunities to prove it.

With ten points currently, and three matches remaining, the highest tally they can reach is 25. And with Waikato and Hawkes Bay already on 23 also with three matches to play the top two spots – and semifinal hosting rights – are out of reach.

Northland and Otago are the teams they're gunning for now, in third and fourth, and by co-incidence they still have those teams to play.

Otago are next, Wednesday night in Dunedin, followed four days later by Southland in Invercargill. Then they wrap up their regular season campaign back at Tauranga Domain against Northland on October 13.

The positive for them is that they have an easier run in than all their competitors for those remaining semifinal spots, and they still have their fate in their own hands, but anything less than three wins out of three will likely leave them wondering what became of such a promising looking season.

Wardlaw looks to offload in the tackle.

Kaleb Trask came out of the match with credit, looking dangerous with ball in hand.

How is the air up there? Tyler Ardron nails lineout possession with help from Kane Le'aupepe and Ross Geldenhuys.