Having talked his way through two matches, the second of which went to extra time, 12 goals, a penalty miss, a hat-trick, a row with Tony Mowbray and two red cards at a pulsating Portman Road, Jim Magilton catches his breath: ‘7-5? In a play-off? You know you’ve been involved in something special.’
It was May 2000 and, for a fourth consecutive season, Ipswich were in the play-offs to reach the Premier League. Needless to say, the first three had been lost.
The most recent defeat, in the 1999 semi-final, was by Bolton. Now, in 2000, it was Bolton again in the play-off semis.
Jim Magilton (right) scores Ipswich's third goal against Bolton in the play-off semi-final
FIRST DIVISION PLAY-OFF SEMI-FINAL, SECOND LEG. May 17, 2000
IPSWICH 5 BOLTON 3 (agg 7-5)
Ipswich: R Wright; Croft, Brown, Mowbray, Venus; Clapham, Holland, Magilton, Scowcroft; Johnson, Stewart
Subs: Naylor, Reuser, Branagan, Thetis, Wilnis
Scorers: Magilton 18 (pen), 49, 90, Clapham 94 (pen), Reuser 110.
Manager: George Burley
BOLTON: Jaaskelainen; Bergsson, Fish, Ritchie, Whitlow; Johansen, Jensen, Elliott, Warhurst; Johnston, Holdsworth
Subs: Banks, Hansen, Phillips, Farrelly, Passi.
Scorers: Holdsworth 6, 39, Johnston 50
Manager: Sam Allardyce
Magilton had arrived from Sheffield Wednesday, initially on loan, in January 1999. At that stage, Ipswich had been out of the Premier League for four seasons and Magilton says his first impression was: ‘Everyone at the club was desperate to get back up. You could smell it.
‘I was desperate, too. I’d left the Premier League to go to Ipswich and that first defeat by Bolton brought it home. We had a great season after that. George Burley had us together.’
Bolton had lost the previous final to Watford, so they had their own motivation. In the first leg at Bolton, the home side were 2-0 up in 26 minutes.
Even then, though, Magilton says he had belief. ‘We still felt ready, it was an open game, unusually open, with no caution from either manager or either group of players. Marcus Stewart scored two great, really calm goals for us. They’d started like a train. We finished like one.’
It finished 2-2 and the second leg was just three days later. Eidur Gudjohnsen was unfit for Bolton. It gave Ipswich a boost.
Magilton (right) celebrates after scoring his side's equalizing goal from the penalty spot
But Dean Holdsworth put Bolton in front and, although Magilton equalised with a penalty, Holdsworth scored again. Before half-time,
