Drama
With regard to the fixtures themselves, you will rarely see more intense, high tempo football than in the playoffs. With so much at stake you can bet they will have everything from goals to red cards, from hissy fits to pitch invasions, from blind rage to pure elation. You only have to look at last season’s play-off semi-final 2nd leg between Watford and Leicester which saw Hornets forward Troy Deeney grab a last gasp aggregate winner 20 seconds after his goalkeeper Manuel Almunia had saved a penalty at the other end. The Championship play-off final of 2010 between Blackpool and Cardiff encapsulated the mixed emotions of the competition perfectly with the lead changing hands 4 times in the first half, and Blackpool eventually seeing out a 3-2 victory. This drama makes promotion all the sweeter, with supporters sent on a roller coaster of emotions throughout the course of the three matches. Sure acquiring enough points over the course of the season to go up is a fantastic achievement, but who would deny that a two-legged semi-final win followed by a trip to Wembley to see your team promoted is the most enjoyable, if downright nerve-racking, way to go up.
