When it comes to promotion campaigns Luke Chambers is on a hat-trick — but his play-off record is nothing to write home about.
Skipper Chambers said: "I’ve had two promotions, one at Northampton up to League One and from there to the Championship with Nottingham Forest, and I’ve been in five play-offs and not made the final once. If we get to the play-offs the gaffer will probably leave me out!
"I’ve been fortunate enough to have been involved in those promotion campaigns and it’s the best feeling you can ever have. But the one I’m missing is going up to the Premier League and we can’t get carried away at the moment because there is a lot of football still to be played. All we can do is concentrate on the next game in front of us.
"Going from the Championship to the Premiership, that’s a different kettle of fish, but I think successful teams generally have the same attributes. They work hard and they put the ball in the back of the net when chances arise.
"We’re doing it — plus we’re working our socks off and in my opinion we’re the hardest-working team in the division.
"A lot was made of Middlesbrough doing a job on Derby and how hard they worked, but they came down here at the weekend and got shown what hard work really is.”
Chambers is just one of a number of seasoned pros in Mick McCarthy’s promotion-chasing squad and he has no doubt they can cope with the pressure that comes with aiming for the top.
He added: "There’s always focus on you as a team when you are successful but we have enough boys in the dressing room with the necessary experience and they are just going to enjoy every single occasion.
"Maybe we’ve been under the radar a little bit but with the manager we have here there was always going to be a point where we were going to start pressing towards the top of the league. It’s the way he sets his teams up and the way he’s had success in the past.
"It was only going to be a matter of time but maybe it has happened sooner than people expected. The boys have always been quietly confident if we could keep everyone together and fit, plus we could get into a groove like we are in at the moment.
"We are just ticking the games off and that’s what we have been focusing on since the start of the season. It was a difficult start and we only had five points after five league games but since then we haven’t really looked back.”
Having seen off Middlesbrough at the weekend Town head to West London on Boxing Day to take on a Brentford side promoted from League One back in May and now looking to take the giant step-up to the Premier League themselves.
Chambers said: "People say they are similar to us and they try to play football the right way, although I don’t think there is a right way. They try to play the ball out from the back and they have players who can score goals and players who can hurt you.
"They are going to be tough opposition for us but I think they will be worried about us as well. I’ve not really been surprised by them because I think the league is so, so tight that anyone can beat anyone.
"It’s easy to put a run together — well, not easy, but you can see how teams who can put out a settled side and get into a run are going to pick points up.”