‘I’ve never been part of a game like it’ – how the play-off shootout unfolded

May 2, 2026 No Comments

‘I’ve never been part of a game like it’ – how the play-off shootout unfolded Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Hull City, Wrexham and Derby County all spent time in the top six on the final day of the Championship seasonByAndrew AloiaBBC Sport EnglandPublished30 minutes agoThree clubs had the chance to snatch the last remaining Championship play-off place on the final day of the season.And all three – Hull City, Wrexham and Derby County – occupied that one place over the course of an early afternoon of footballing drama played out across East Yorkshire, north east Wales and the East Midlands.Spoiler alert: Hull City were the one to get over the line with their victory against Norwich.

And below is a snapshot of how the Tigers came out on top at the end of a day that started with Hollywood-backed Wrexham in sixth and saw Derby threatening to gatecrash the play-offs when leading Sheffield United at half-time.

How it played out

It all began with Wrexham in pole position to continue their hopes of challenging for promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs.

Numbers were crunched by statisticians (see the table above) and predictions aplenty were made by pundits who had the Red Dragons – a club going for a fourth-successive promotion under the ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac – as favourites to finish sixth.

How quickly that changed once their game against Middlesbrough, Hull’s meeting with Norwich and Derby’s date with Sheffield United kicked off at 12:30 BST.

12:34: Middlesbrough’s Tommy Conway opened the scoring at Wrexham, dropping the Welsh side out of play-off places. At this point, it’s advantage Hull.

12:36: The Tigers, who were feeling their way through the early moments of their game with Norwich, are only sixth for a matter of seconds as Sam Szmodics’ tap-in finish for Derby gave the Rams an early lead. This advantage sends Derby, who started the day eighth, above both Hull and Wrexham into sixth in the live table.

Sam Szmodics puts Derby County ahead against Sheffield United with a tap-in finish at Pride Park — Image caption,

Sam Szmodics put Derby County ahead against Sheffield United with this finish from point-blank range

12:58: A wondrous free-kick from Josh Windass gets Wrexham back level against automatic-promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough. But it’s still advantage Derby by a point.

That goal coincided with Norwich taking the lead at Hull, which had the Tigers momentarily losing touch in eighth place before Oli McBurnie levelled within two minutes.

13:11: A bullet header from Sam Smith had Wrexham ahead against Boro for the first time and back back up to sixth. Cue pandemonium at the the Stok Cae Ras.

Sam Smith took flight with his goal celebration against Middlesbrough, slamming into the corner flag with a two-footed leap — Image caption,

Wrexham’s Sam Smith took flight with his goal celebration against Middlesbrough

13:13: At this point, it’s worth highlighting that Wrexham incredible journey from non-league football to be within touching distance the Premier League is the focus of a smash hit docuseries. Why say that now? Well, because of the season-defining plot twist the followed just two minutes later when David Strelec levelled with a close-range finish to stun the expectant hosts.

13:19: That Middlesbrough equaliser had changed the half-time picture somewhat. It meant Derby were back up to sixth and within 45 minutes of play-off football.

Image caption,

How the Championship table looked at half-time on the final day of the 2025-26 season

13:52: A misplaced pass from Derby’s Joe Ward had a seismic effect on this game and the play-off race. The ball was quickly and coolly moved on to Tom Cannon in the box, who slotted Sheffield United’s equaliser into an unguarded net as Rams defenders swarmed in collective panic around him. With the score 1-1 at Pride Park, and both Wrexham and Hull also locked in stalemates in their respective games, Derby dropped back to eighth with Wrexham wriggling back up to sixth.

13:59: And it only got worse for Derby, as Sydie Peck put mid-table Sheffield United – a team with nothing to play for – ahead for the first time. Barring a spectacular turnaround, Derby were as good as out of contention.

14:01: Wrexham replaced Derby in sixth for less than 10 minutes, with the complexion of the table transformed again when McBurnie grabbed his and Hull’s second goal of the day to edge them ahead in their game against Norwich and above the Red Dragons in what had whittled down to a tug-of-war for sixth between two sides playing 150 miles apart from one another.

Oli McBurnie scoring the goal that sealed Hull's spot in the play-offs — Image caption,

Oli McBurnie scoring the goal that sealed Hull’s spot in the play-offs

14:26: We were into nerve-jangling territory as Wrexham’s draw with Middlesbrough was verified. With a lengthy amount of stoppage time being played out at Hull, the Welsh side had to wait to see if Norwich would do them a favour and peg the Tigers back.

14:30: Hull City, a side that had failed to win in six games leading up to their final match of the season, held on for victory and booked a play-off date with Millwall. They end up two points clear of Wrexham in seventh. Derby’s defeat consigned them to an eighth-placed finish.

The final Championship table for the 2025-26 season — Image caption,

How the final Championship table looked

Hull pride, and vows to get better – the reaction

Hull boss Sergej Jakirovic told BBC Radio Humberside after the matches were over that the the topsy-turvy football that had unfolded would have been “excellent for you all in the media”.

“For me, it was a new experience,” he reported. “I’ve never been part of a game, where three teams can reach the play-offs [on the final day]. I learned something new, that you have to be calm and believe in your team.”

But for all three sides, battling it out for a Championship play-off place in the 46th game of the campaign was proof of incredible progress made by each.

Just 12 months ago, Hull were a side fighting for survival on the final day of the 2024-25 season. After that, the club was put under a transfer embargo.

And it is with players picked up on free transfers and on loan that Jakirovic has moulded a side that is now challenging for a place back in the top flight.

“I’m very proud of everyone at the club, from the groundsman, to our security and those in the kitchen – all those people around us have made it a good environment to work in, where we are very happy and come into the training ground with a smile on our face every morning,” he reported.

“It’s like a puzzle. Every man is very important in our environment to make sure that we stay positive, optimistic and that we are together when we are losing or winning. And that was the main thing all season.”

Hull City fans celebrate reaching the play-offs with match-winner Ollie McBurnie — Image caption,

Hull City fans invaded the pitch after their side’s win over Norwich to celebrate reaching the play-offs with match-winner Ollie McBurnie

Wrexham, whose rise of recent years has been well documented thanks to the profile of their owners, will not get the chance to go on to try to complete a history making fourth promotion.

But boss Phil Parkinson came out with a promise – that should really read as a warning to those in the second tier next season – that his side “will be even stronger next year”.

“Of course we’ll always look to try and add to that to give ourselves an even better chance, but we’ll have a break now and we’ll come back and go again,” Parkinson reported.

As for Derby, their play-off near miss has come after a transformative period for the club that was in administration just four years ago.

They, like Hull, only avoided relegation on the final day last season in what was their first campaign back in the Championship after two years spent in League One.

Rams boss John Eustace echoed Parkinson’s sentiment when talking about wanting to see his side continue to build to become one of the Championship’s top contenders next term.

“I don’t think they [players] will want to rest – they will want to go again,” he told BBC Radio Derby after their defeat.

“The progression we have made this season has been outstanding. Over the course of the season, were we good enough to get into the top six? Maybe, maybe not. We have come up just short, but what an unbelievable effort. Every single one of the players has been outstanding.”