“As a manager that’s something you live with,” the manager continued. “You look at certain things and certain tactics, you’re changing it from game to game against different teams, which we did.

“You look at it in training and you form your opinion. Martijn Reuser would always be a big influence off the bench, like he was in the semi-final, so sometimes if you’ve got that up your sleeve you think you don’t want to lose that.

“Martijn was that type of player with bags of ability and you knew he could come on and make a big impact.

“Other decisions you look at in training. That’s a manager’s job. Of course, fans will always have their different opinions but as a manager working with players day to day you’ve got a very keen eye for how players are looking and how they would fit into certain games more than anyone else.

“And so I think fans have got to have confidence in their manager and look to back them, and thankfully I had that all the time while I was at Portman Road.”

Burley tried to treat the game as near to a normal fixture as possible, although the squad travelled to their hotel in Windsor on the Saturday ahead of the Bank Holiday Monday game rather than the usual day before to avoid getting stuck in the bank holiday traffic.

“I was always a believer that every day in training it was a game of habits,” he said. “I was brought up with good habits at Ipswich and that’s the way I tried to bring the players up when I was manager of the team.

“You’re doing it day-in and day-out, we’d got to work at it and work at it, so you don’t do a wee bit more for a final than you would do for the first game of the season.”

Burley played plenty of big games for the Blues in his 12 years as a first team player between 1973 and 1985, not least the 1978 FA Cup final, but this was his most important as a manager and he admits he was feeling some nerves.

“Yes, because the pressure had built up season after season,” he said. “Everybody from the club wanted to get back into the Premier League, it was such a huge place to be, that’s where Ipswich wanted to be.

“There was a lot of pressure and it’s something you live with. As a player you’re used to pressure, as a manager you live with that pressure but it’s a little bit different as a manager because you’ve got to try and work with every individual to try to get the best out of them - how’s the team going to play? How am I going to prepare the best way?

“There’s a lot of pressure on a manager to get the whole aspects of training and organisation right for that game on the Saturday.”

On the coach on the way to Wembley the squad watched a video put together by club sports psychologist - and lifelong Town fan - Ken Way showing each player’s and the team’s best moments from the season.

“We used to do that, it wasn’t just for the final,” Burley said. “I think the psychology is important and Ken Way came in every now and again to work with the players, they knew him well.

“I think like anything, the thoughts in your mind, the positivity in your mind, if you’re seeing seeing good things happen as a team, as a club, as an individual that can only make you grow as a person and as a player.

“I think that’s very important as well. There are so many aspects that make a good player but you’ve got to have the lot rolled into one to be an outstanding one.”

Several of the boys of 78 have mentioned how one of the most memorable moments of that day was walking out of the tunnel and hearing the noise of the Blues fans sitting behind them, as was also the case in 2000. Only Burley was there on the two occasions and he says for him personally the play-off eclipses the FA Cup final.

“Both were fantastic but I think as a manager you’re the one that’s leading the team, doing everything so you’ve got a lot of responsibility on your back,” he said.

“As a player, it’s an individual thing in a team so individually you’re just concentrating on yourself, getting your fitness, getting your sharpness, getting everything ready for training.

“As a manager you’ve got the whole spectrum to try and get right. It’s more of a pressurised job. But the feeling of walking out of that tunnel is no different. The shivers go up your spine on both occasions because they’re special days. Those sort of days you never forget.”

Also walking out with the team, despite being unavailable due to his injury, was Scowcroft at Burley’s invitation.

“Scowy had played a big part in the success of the club, he was a fantastic lad,” the manager explained. “He was a local lad, he came through the academy, I gave him his debut at 17, he epitomised what you were looking for in Ipswich Town players - to have the right attitude, the quality to come through the ranks.

“I think the fans liked to see that as well, it was something I had as a player, so I think it was only right that Scowy deserved some sort of credit for getting us there.

“Unfortunately he tore his hamstring and had to miss out in the final but for the rest of the players to see Scowy up there they think ‘We want to win for you, mate, because you’ve been with us over the last few years and had a big say in how we’d got there’.”

As had been the case in both semi-finals, the Blues found themselves behind early on with Craig Hignett’s sixth-minute 30-yard strike hitting the bar and Richard Wright’s back before crossing the line.

“We started a little bit sluggishly and Barnsley were brave and sharp and had some good players,” the former Town boss said. “We were a goal behind but the game had just started, so that was a signal to try and step it up a little bit. We still had 80-odd minutes to play.

“It was disappointing to lose a goal so early but I don’t think the heads dropped and we knew we still had the ability to get back into the game.”

Another blow was losing 23-goal striker Johnson - who had dyed his hair blue for the occasion - to his calf injury after only 22 minutes.

“We had injuries, had some knocks, he suffered a little bit when he was at that club because of his knee as he’d had a major operation when he was younger and that hampered him at times,” Burley continued.

Photos: Action Images

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