Four season stand out:
1999/2000 - Year I got my first season ticket, we were in League One and had Jon Macken, Michael Jackson, Sean Gregan, Paul McKenna, Graham Alexander, and we won the league, and paraded it around the city which thousands flocked too
2000/01 - First season in the Nationwide Division One as it was called, and we got into the play-offs, first leg we lost 1-0 to Birmingham, a Nicky Eaden strike, but we quickly went ahead at Deepdale int he 2nd leg through David Healy. Horsfield then scored for Bham to make it 2-1, and then I remember, Stan Lazaridis went clean through on 90 minutes, and his shot basically rolled across the line, and stayed in play and we attacked with everyone forward. Healy had a shot, parried, and Mark Rankine, who could only pass sideways, popped up to knock the ball in from 4 yards, We then won on penalties cue a mass pitch invasion (and Trevor Francis moaning that the pens were taken infront of the PNE fans, and not infront of the demolished Town End). The fnal saw us play Sam Allardyce's Bolton Wanderers, his assistant, none other than Phil Brown. We lost 3-0 that day, I was there. Gareth Farrelly, and two future Northenders, Ricardo Gardner and Michael Ricketts scored. Even though I was 5 and a half I was still proud of PNE and David Moyes.
2004-05 - Billy Davies took us to the Play-Off Final. A fantastic season saw us finish 5th I think. We signed David Nugent from Bury for £100k in the January window and his goals cemented the playoff spot. We faced Derby County in the semi's, and we won 2-0 (Nugent and Cresswell goals) and I remember my face beign in the paper after celebrating Nugent's goal). The second leg was 0-0 until Derby got a late penalty, a dive by Grezgorz Rasiak. Karma bit him in the ass and he put it wide. The final was against 6th place West Ham, and like 4 years earlier, we lost 1-0, Bobby Zamora goal. Our defence at the time (Alexander - Mawene - Davis - Hill) was the best in the league that season, and a few slips in the box gave Zamora the goal.
2008-09 - Fondly remember this season - Irvine's football wasn't the prettiest but it got us results. The previous season we cemented safety due to his results and the arrival of Chris Brown upfront. This season, it was Sean St.Ledger's turn to be the hero, his best season yet for us (his last good season before he ruined his football by getting loaned to 'Boro the following season). We also had the combo of Ross Wallace on the wing and the massive beast, Jon Parkin upfront. I remember Birmingham at home on SKY, December 2008, and Wallace's pinpoint cross in the 92nd minute was chested down by Parkin, and GOALLLLLL. Come the last 3 games and we had an outside chance of grabbing 6th place from Cardiff, we had a very tough run-in: Cardiff themselves (H), automatic promotion hunters Birmingham (A), and QPR (H).
And the biggest shock was a 6-0 win over Cardiff. They were shite that day, and we steamrolled them. Then onto Birmingham away. We trailed 1-0 to a Keith Fahey goal, and then BOOOOM! Paul McKenna rifled in a 30 yard effort to make it 1-1. With 7 minutes left, Lee Bowyer pinned our loan midfielder Lee Williamson to the ground, he never retailated, just was grappling to get off him. Both recieved a red card, Bowyer's was deserved but Williamson was in the wrong. We (the pub I was in) all thought it was going to be a draw, until Radhi Jaidi kicked Simon Whaley in the cock and we got a free-kick, 25 yards out. Perfect Ross Wallace territory. He bent it over the ball, crashed against the post, and into the back of the net. The PNE fans went delirious, Wallace's over-the-top celebrations earnt him a 2nd yellow card, meaning he would miss the crunch game on the final day against QPR. We were hoping Sheff Wed would beat Cardiff, and if we then beat QPR, we'd be in the play-offs. It was 1-1 by the 75th minute, Parkin had given us the lead but old boy Agyemang scored for QPR. With 14 minutes to go, cheers rung round the ground....Sheff Wed had scored! This fired up the players, and a long Parkin throw in was flicked to the back post by Chris Brown, and St.Ledger rose highest........GOALLLLLLLL. A header by St.Ledger. I remember lots of fans running to the bottom to celebrate, and I got to hug SSL. Full time came and we were in the play-offs, on the virtue of goals scored, not goal difference. Pitch invasion as thousands ran onto the turf.
Sheffield United in the playoffs. Less I say about this, the better. Drew 1-1 in the first leg, 2nd leg we lost 1-0 at Bramall Lane, Halford header. Dream over.
