May 29th and I'm going back 28 years to 1993 and York City's Division 3 Play-Off Final at Wembley.
If you've been paying attention you'll remember that I've complained before about the rebranding of the Football League's divisions. In my book this was the Fourth Division's Play-Off Final but, thanks to the creation of the FA Premier League, what had previously been known as League Divisions 2, 3 and 4 became known as League Divisions 1, 2 and 3 causing confusing ever after when we try to explain what we were watching at the time. But why let tradition and history get in the way of a rebranding and remarketing exercise that would keep the consultants occupied? Little did we know it at the time but that 1992/3 season would quickly become the point from which football history began. Sky, with the TV rights to the new Premier League increasingly began to refer to their "product" as if nothing had gone before it and, today, you'll often see statistics on all channels along the lines of "Alan Shearer is the top scorer in Premier League history". It's true of course, but he isn't the top scorer in top flight history! Do you know who is? That's the problem with it!
York came into the game off the back of a recent change of manager and had finished their 42-game league season in fourth place behind the three automatically promoted clubs: champions Cardiff City, Wrexham and Barnet. The teams finishing in 4th to 7th places had to scrap it out for the final promotion berth via the Play-Offs. As covered in one of my earlier programme articles, York had overcome Bury by 1-0 on aggregate whilst sixth placed Crewe Alexandra had seen off Walsall in their own Play-Off Semi-Final. York finished the regular season five points better off than Dario Gradi's Crewe but would start on equal terms at Wembley.
I wonder whether York have ever played a game later in the season than this one? What was certain was that this was York's first ever visit to Wembley and their only ever visit to the old Wembley with the Twin Towers. The game was a high stakes affair for both sides and it's understandable that both were a little tentative throughout. 90 minutes came and went and, with no goals scored, we had extra time. In the first half of the extra period the deadlock was finally broken with a goal from Play-Off specialist goal scorer and York-born Gary Swann. It looked to have won the game but City substitute Steve Tutill knew different. In the final minute of the match, Crewe took a corner and, as the ball came over, Tutill reached up and handled it when there didn't look to be any particular danger. God knows why he decided to do that and one wonders what his team mates might have made of it had they not gone on to win?
Up stepped Crewe's Dave McKearney to fire home from the spot and, with no time left, the 22,416 attendees had a penalty shootout to enjoy / endure. Praise the Lord for Gareth Whalley's poor penalty which City's goalkeeper Dean Kiely actually saved and held onto. York had scored each of their first four penalties and if "Ginner" Wayne Hall could put the fifth one away then City were up! The Ginger Sex God took his spot kick with a calm assurance that suggested he had been taking penalties all his life (he hadn't) and fell to his knees arms aloft as the net bulged. City had done it! I always say that going up via a Play-Off Final is even better than automatic promotion but it's not for those of a nervous disposition that's for sure!
CRB Match No. 842
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