Conor Hourihane lifts the play-off final trophy for Barnsley!
Congratulations to them, commiserations to a fine Millwall side too, and thanks a lot for your company this afternoon – it was a cracking League One play-off final. Don’t forget there’s more tomorrow in League Two, with Plymouth facing Wimbledon, and we’ll be bringing that to you. Bye!
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Hammill: “An unbelievable feeling, we’ve worked hard since November, sacrificed a lot and this is absolutely deserved. I’m made up for all the players and staff, they fully deserve it.”
Isgrove: “No better way to top a great season. [The first goal] settled down any nerves we had at the start and as soon as we started moving the ball we never looked like losing.”
Heckingbottom: “I said we’d wait until after the season [to decide his future]. Now we can decide. I couldn’t be any prouder. Any single thing we’ve asked them to do throughout the season, they’ve done it. They deserve every little bit the celebrations they’ll have.”
What a story this is. They were at rock bottom; they’ve now shot right up though the top. Barnsley were the better side today, barring that revival by Millwall just before half-time, and played some vibrant stuff. They’ll be fun to watch in the second tier if this is anything to go by. They celebrate, Millwall slump to the floor.
Barnsley are promoted to the Championship!
And you would have to say that they fully deserve it.
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90+3 min: They do win a corner though, right in the depths of added time now, and Davies catches it superbly.
90+2 min: It almost opens up for Morison on the left of the area, but Brownhill darts in smartly and that was probably the last chance for Millwall to offer anything of consequence.
90 min: Barnsley are four added minutes from promotion.
89 min: Hammill almost has the chance for another after good work from Toney, but Williams blocks. Millwall have gone.
87 min: James Wells writes in with some good analysis –
“One has to wonder whether Millwall would have conceded the first and third goals if they had their first choice defenders, instead of the makeshift backline they had to field today through suspension and injury.
“Either way, I think Harris, like Simeone last night went too long without making a change to freshen things up and inject some energy back into their teams.”
I agree with both points and the second definitely rings true. Barnsley, in the meantime, are pressing for a fourth but Winnall can’t convert.
86 min: And that *was* the chance. O’Brien finds Taylor, who is through on Davies, but the ‘keeper gets down well and saves to his right. It needed to go in.
85 min: That could have been the chance, Morison of all people putting in a super cross that O’Brien, where Morison usually would be at the far post, is a bit surprised to see reach him and heads behind. Then Isgrove, scorer of what is surely the clincher, is replaced by Watkins for Barnsley.
83 min: Gregory does well to keep a ball in on the right but nobody can get onto his cross. If Millwall are to make this at all interesting something has to happen now-ish.
82 min: Barnsley will have liked that 90-second delay ...and would have liked it even more if another imaginative set-piece (and they’ve tried a few) finds its way to Winnall, who had peeled back really cleverly, and the striker lashes over.
82 min: And a third Millwall change. Edwards off, Shaun Williams on.
81 min: It’s – yes – a Barnsley corner after a ricochet from far out goes in their favour. First, Fletcher is replaced by Ivan Toney. Haven’t seen much of Fletcher in this half but what an impact he has had here.
79 min: Onyedinma shows great speed to reach the line but can only run the ball out for a goal kick. Again, Barnsley must be praised to the hilt for regaining the momentum so superbly here, but Millwall can only be disappointed. I think the loss of Martin, which effectively lost them Ferguson too, was a big moment.
76 min: Millwall bring Fred Onyedinma on for Thompson. It’s an attacking move but I just don’t think they have done enough here. It was understandable that they wouldn’t go hell for leather straight after the break but they’ve let Barnsley have the initiative, really, and showed none of the proactivity they displayed in the 15 minutes before half-time. They’ll regret that.
Goal! Barnsley 3-1 Millwall (Isgrove 74)
That should do it! A good Hammill delivery is glanced behind for a corner on the right. Hourihane whips it in, Archer comes out to claim it but, perhaps impeded by one of his own defenders, it outjumped by the smallest man on the pitch! It’s Isgrove, who flashes a header into the empty net and gives Barnsley a solid foot in the Championship!
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72 min: The game is drifting away from Millwall a bit. Time to bring on some cavalry?
71 min: Ooooh, very clever low ball from Hammill all the way across to Isgrove, coming in towards the far post, and Ferguson has to do his left-back duties well. Corner to Barnsley, but a free-kick is given after it is taken.
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69 min: O’Brien has moved to the right flank, it seems. I think losing Ferguson’s threat on the left really stalled them.
67 min: Close for Millwall – at last! Morison gets to O’Brien’s through ball ahead of Davies, rounds him, but the angle is tight and he is heading away from goal. He scoops a cross up into the six-yard box and it bounces around, nobody can quite clear, but then O’Brien turns onto it and finds the recovering Davies well placed to save his shot. They need more of that.
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65 min: Inviting early wall from Hourihane, bent around the back with Winnall lurking at the far post. He can’t quite get there but applauds the very worthy intent.
63 min: Poor from Taylor though, Davies collecting with no opposition and Neil Harris looks unhappy on the touchline.
63 min: Agricultural stuff from Roberts out on the left touchline, cleaning Gregory out. Free kick, yellow card, chance ...
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62 min: Hammill has another try on his weaker left foot after taking the ball a long way, but it’s easy for Archer.
60 min: Another corner for Barnsley, who I think are playing this very well at the moment. They have not panicked. Hammill goes short, takes the return and stands up an inviting cross to the back post but nobody can quite get up for it.
59 min: Oooh, Gregory is almost let in there, running onto Abdou’s header and seeing a defender’s clearance ricochet off him – but Davies collects before the striker can react.
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57 min: Not the thrill-a-minute fare of earlier but you can see why Millwall wouldn’t want to go gung-ho just yet. They have time, and they have firepower. But you’d expect them to ramp things up after the hour.
56 min: Hamill gets a run at Edwards and is shown onto his left foot, the right-back getting his angles correct and conceding only a corner. The winger gets two bites at it, but Archer claims the second one.
54 min: Isgrove crosses from the right and Winnall wins the header but can’t get it towards goal. At the other end, Mawson stops the resulting goal-kick finding its way to Morison.
53 min: Yes, this is what Barnsley would have wanted. No threat from Millwall yet in this half and, in general, it’s fairly scrappy although Winnall is dropping deep into a few pockets and causing bother.
51 min: Craig is in again to stop Winnall having a crack, this time on the edge of the box. Nothing passive about Barnsley here, they’ve come out with renewed vim.
50 min: Barnsley win another corner, Craig coming in to divert a Hammill ball away from Winnall. They have started the half well. This time it’s right-sided and Hammill tries a training-ground move that results in a little chip towards the near post, but it goes wrong and drifts out of play.
48 min: That Ferguson-O’Brien balance will be crucial to Millwall, you’d think. Seemed a bit of a blow that Ferguson, a lively customer, had been moved to left-back after Martin’s injury just before half-time. Can O’Brien take the mantle, and make space for Ferguson to roam into?
46 min: Good early work by Fletcher down by the right byline, winning a corner. In by Hourihane but there’s a foul in there and Millwall survive.
Peeeeeep! Second half commences
They have swapped sides, as is convention. Barnsley have kicked us off.
Nearly ready for the second half here ... will Millwall maintain their momentum or can Barnsley score what would probably be a decisive third? Barnsley need to stay calm, I think, and look for the counter. The players are back out.
If you’re an exiled Barnsley or Millwall fan – or even if you aren’t – then don’t be shy. How are you feeling?
Half-time: Barnsley 2-1 Millwall
Well, this has been what you’d want from a play-off final hasn’t it? Fletcher’s clinical finish after 88 seconds was followed by a jawdropping strike from Hammill and at that stage Barnsley were rampant. But Millwall, to their credit, used their experience to dig themselves a foothold and got back into it through Beevers. They finished the half on top and if I were you I wouldn’t go anywhere.
45+3 min: Not quite. Barnsley win a late corner from their first real attacking move for some time. Archer flaps at Hourihane’s delivery but, it transpires, was impeded.
45+2 min: Ferguson seeks Gregory with a diagonal ball but Davies takes and that is probably that for this half.
45+1 min: Edwards throws long from far, far up the pitch and it comes to nothing. Three minutes added here.
45 min: More respite for Barnsley with a free-kick 35 yards out. Brownhill tries a speculative one after the ball is laid off to him, but it’s high, wide and pretty darn ugly.
44 min: No, calf. But still. Martin’s off.
43 min: Yes, hamstring. Another defensive change for Millwall then, with the left-back leaving the fray now. On comes Aiden O’Brien, a forward, so I think that means Ferguson will move to left-back. Will that hinder Millwall in two positions – neutralising Ferguson’s threat on the wing – or offer them another marauding option from full-back?
42 min: Now Millwall’s Martin is down and Barnsley might be glad of a stoppage or two. He seems in a bit of pain – and a replay shows that he went down off the ball. Looks like a hamstring....
40 min: Clash of heads near halfway and Winnall is down, but gets up and does not appear to need treatment.
38 min: Millwall look a totally different side now, playing at a completely new intensity, although an unnecessary attempt at trickery by Ferguson scuppers another attack. Barnsley, so slick for most of the half, could probably use half-time now. But it’s still some way away.
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37 min: Another left-sided corner for Millwall, who are now being roared on by their fans again. In by Ferguson, out bravely by Mawson, who is fouled. You know all the things you want in a play-off final? This game has them. It’s superb.
Goal! Barnsley 2-1 Millwall (Beevers 34)
Now then! Ferguson wins a corner, which he then swings out from the left. Morison wins the header at the near post, the ball is kept in play at the back stick, Craig takes a swipe and miscues into the path of Barnsley-born Beevers, who holds off his man cleverly and lashes home! They’d just started to threaten, and now they’re right back in it!
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33 min: Morison wins a header and again Taylor has a glimmer, but Mawson defends well. A few little sights for Millwall in the last few minutes, a bit more cohesion, but they have to score the next goal.
32 min: Superbly in now by Scowen, as Gregory and Taylor link up on the edge of the area. He gets in to deny the latter, and then Edwards’ latest howitzer is headed out.
31 min: A bit better from Millwall as the ball is switched wide to Ferguson, probably their main threat so far. He has a run at Scowen but never really gets enough space to pick someone out, and his cross from the byline is claimed by Davies.
29 min: After a little break while Taylor has some treatment, Edwards pumps the free-kick forwards but Winnall is there to head away.
28 min: Late from Williams on Chris Taylor just inside the Millwall half, and the Barnsley man is rightly booked.
27 min: Not too much noise from the Millwall end now. They have two big goal threats up top and perhaps have the physical edge but they’ve yet to fashion a real chance beyond that early Beevers header, which now looks costly. Barnsley have just been fresher, zippier, and deserve the lead.
25 min: Alan Cooper joins me on memory lane –
“Thanks for the posting the 2000 Playoff Final link—I was there too. The last competitive club match at old Wembley! Great day. 16 years ago today...
“Today’s match is weirdly full of Ipswich resonance—you mentioned Carlos Edwards, and the Guardian ran that nice piece about Conor Hourihane the other day. But then there the Mick McCarthy angle—this is almost the Mick McCarthy derby! I wonder who he’s supporting!”
16 years. It feels like yesterday.
24 min: Hammill’s goal, though – just make sure you see it. Absolutely sensational hit. He’s capable of it, always has been.
23 min: Barnsley come again but Martin takes no prisoners with his tackle on Isgrove, who had brought the ball down the right. The Tykes have the pace to extend their lead on the counter here.
21 min: Morison wins a header at the near post from another Edwards long throw, but Davies catches sharply. Barnsley are in dreamland just now though. They have looked so sharp.
Goal! Barnsley 2-0 Millwall (Hammill 19)
Oh my! What a goal from the winger! Barnsley win the ball on halfway and the ball is fed to Hammill, who carries the ball in from the left, waits until the shooting chance opens up and then, 25 yards out, curls in an absolute dream of a shot that soars, bends, dips over Archer and into the top corner. Remember Diame’s goal for Hull yesterday? This was better – an absolutely stunning strike for the occasion.
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17 min: First real sniff for Morison, found at the back post by a good left-sided cross by Martin. He peels away and the angle probably isn’t quite right for a header at goal; instead he nods it across the six-yard box, and there’s nobody in the mix to convert.
16 min: Thompson looks for Gregory again but the Barnsley keeper Adam Davies is out swiftly to take.
14 min: And Fletcher could make it two! It’s a simple ball down the line and Millwall step up to leave him onside! He has acres of space but the angle is tight and there’s nobody in support. Archer closes down well and blocks his shot for a corner. From that, Hourihane plays a clever one along the ground to Winnall, stationed 15 yards out, and he doesn’t quite make the right contact – his shot is blocked in front of goal. Millwall need to sort this out at the back; Webster’s late injury has clearly hurt them.
12 min: Early, early days but Fletcher looks a very good player. Some nice strength and technique on the halfway line there to hold two men off and lay the ball to a team-mate. The new Marcus Rashford, perhaps?
11 min: Dangerous cross from Ferguson but it’s cleared, and then Williams makes an important intervention from Thompson’s ball, which was intended for Gregory. Millwall starting to pose a question or two after being shocked by the goal.
9 min: Long throw from Edwards towards Morison but Barnsley centre-back Mawson heads away well. He’ll need to keep doing that. At the other end Isgrove jinks in from the right and the ball is worked to Hamill, but his cross is harmless.
7 min: A thought – did that late defensive change hinder Millwall for the goal? It came from a very straightforward punt, even though it was put away well.
6 min: Fletcher does some good work on the edge of his own box to rob Thompson. Barnsley are operating at some tempo here and look super-confident.
5 min: Barnsley get in again and this time Hammill lashes high and wide from the right-hand side of the box.
4 min: Now that was pure play-offs. First 90 seconds, one chance for Millwall, one goal for Barnsley. It could barely be set up better now, and what a clinical run and finish from the 20-year-old Fletcher.
Goal! Barnsley 1-0 Millwall (Fletcher 2)
What a start! From the goal kick, Winnall gets up to win a flick and the striker Ashley Fletcher, on loan from Manchester United, is there first, haring into the box at rapid speed and arrowing a superb finish low to Archer’s right! Game on.
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1 min: Taylor floats it in from the left and Mark Beevers, who was born in Barnsley, nods wide when he could conceivably have opened the scoring. Decent chance.
1 min: Immediate free-kick in a very dangerous position for Millwall as the left-winger Ferguson is fouled by right-back Scowen...
Peeeeeep!
Stuart Attwell parps on his whistle, Millwall – right to left – get us underway, and I think this is going to be good.
Anthem time. Please be upstanding as Annalise sings it.
You’ll also know Carlos Edwards from the Millwall squad, of course – former Sunderland and Ipswich trooper. He’s now 37 and has done superbly to recover from a serious injury that laid him low for nearly a year – and in fact led to his initial release last season before re-signing. Here he starts at right-back, and by all accounts still seems as fit as a fiddle.
And now the teams are out! Looks like a big crowd at Wembley and you can certainly hear the Millwall fans and that long one-note chant of theirs. Craig, who wasn’t playing half an hour ago, leads Millwall out.
Barnsley won both the league meetings between these two by the way – 3-2 away, 2-1 at home.
The trophy for today’s winners has been placed on a dais. This game will be declared invalid, though, if Alicia Keys doesn’t come on fist and delay kick-off by five minutes.
A change to the Millwall team
And quite a big one. Influential centre-back Byron Webster, who had been struggling for fitness, didn’t make it through the warm=up and is replaced by Tony Craig – who, to be fair, is a vastly experienced campaigner who knows what it’s all about.
Who are today’s dangermen then? Look out for Barnsley striker Sam Winnall, who has scored 24 goals this season – including two in the semi-final first leg against Walsall. Their excellent wide man Adam Hammill, thriving in his second spell at the club, is a potent threat too.
For Millwall, you probably know the 32-year-old Steve Morison, an excellent leader of the line who has 19 goals to his name. But the sharpest shooter of them all is strike partner Lee Gregory, with 27 in all competitions. So much firepower out there today.
Barnsley are no strangers to Wembley. In fact, they were there this season for the Football League Trophy final, which they won. They also lost to Portsmouth there in the 2008 FA Cup semi-final – an event I must admit I’d quite forgotten about. I was actually at their last Wembley play-off final, when this happened. The Barnsley supporters were an absolute joy that day though – really sporting.
Millwall, of course, contested an FA Cup final there in 2004. More recently, they beat Swindon 1-0 in the 2010 play-off final, benefiting from a Charlie Austin horror miss in so doing.
This afternoon's teams
Barnsley: Davies; Scowen, Mawson, Roberts, Williams; Isgrove, Brownhill, Hourihane, Hammill; Winnall, Fletcher. Subs: Townsend, Nyatanga, Chapman, Toney, McCourt, White, Watkins.
Millwall: Archer; Edwards, Webster, Beevers, Martin; Taylor, Thompson, Abdou, Ferguson; Gregory, Morison. Subs: Forde, Craig, Nelson, Williams, Upson, Onyedinma, O’Brien.
Hello!
Well, this should be fun. If the Championship play-off final was settled spectacularly yesterday, then you rather think it might have been nothing more than an appetiser. Today’s League One final is marvellously set up for some of the chaos and thunder we’re used to from these occasions – with two fine sides going toe to toe.
In the blue corner, Millwall. Very much a yo-yo team between League One and the Championship these days, they feel they’ve got their identity back under the excellent management of club legend Neil Harris – and think they might be going places if they can get back up to the second tier, too. They finished fourth in the division, beating Bradford impressively in the semi-finals, and go into this one as favourites. Jacob Steinberg has written very nicely about their revival.
In the red corner, Barnsley. I’ll leave the full explanation to Nick Miller’s excellent piece, but they’ve had the most remarkable of runs into the top six, going from bottom of the table at the end of November to a rattling win over highly-favoured Walsall that brings them here today. They are a young, vibrant side and it’s hard to imagine a cagey game of football this afternoon.
That’s a short scene-setter. Do get in touch throughout the afternoon with your thoughts, predictions, observations, tips – it could be a rollercoaster.
Nick will be here soon.
