But the funds they provided were never remotely enough.They were paupers at a table set for kings. When they took their seats last August, Barnsley’s incoming transfer record stood at pounds 310,000. Wilson has not had to deal entirely in petty cash but the most he has been allowed to spend on one player is pounds 1.5m. That bought him Ashley Ward, a striker who could not get into Derby’s team.Initially, he tried to survive with a First Division squad, which was never likely to work, especially if it takes three months to realise that the demands of the Premiership are a long way from those of the section just below.”The strength and power in the Premiership is difficult to understand unless you’ve played in it,” Wilson said. The odds against it happening again are depressingly long.Money, of course, holds the key. Substitutes not used: Tomasson, Hislop (gk).Chelsea (4-4-2): Kharine; Clarke, Charvet, Leboeuf, (Poyet 45), Granville; Nicholls, Newton (P Hughes, 77), Di Matteo, Morris; Vialli, M Hughes (Flo 45).

Substitutes not used: Lee, Hitchcock (gk).Referee: K Burge (Pontypandy).Bookings: Newcastle: Pearce, Vialli, Leboeuf.Man of the match: Lee.Attendance: 36,710.. Leicester City 1 Barnsley 0

WHAT now then for Barnsley and for Danny Wilson, their proud and dignified manager? In the short term, a fanfare farewell before a full house at Oakwell next Sunday. Manchester United at home – the perfect closing chapter on a season of fantasy.
But after that? The realisation, sooner or later, that the dream has died and left them back at square one. They may talk now about making a quick return but at the start of another First Division season the prize of the Premiership will seem a tiny light at the end of a very long tunnel.It is not a prospect they will relish.

Promotion last season was a bit of a fluke, if the truth be told, not undeserved but freakish in that it disrupted the natural order of things in a manner that becomes increasingly rare. We’ve never been complacent.”So it was that at the end of the match the players made, in Dalglish’s words, “not so much a lap of honour as a show of appreciation to the supporters”.That loyalty, however, cannot be expected to endure a re- enactment of this season and Dalglish will have to add to the commendable spirit some of the exotic skills Chelsea flaunt – and Newcastle discarded – in a reactionary embrace of pragmatism.The breakthrough, when it came, was a routine set play, Lee flighting the ball to the far post and Nikolaos Dabizas scoring with a leaping header. Lee emulated the spectacular feat, lunging in to head the second from Shearer’s cross.Speed’s precise finish secured the points and Newcastle’s premiership status, and Roberto Di Matteo’s delightful late goal served merely to compound his manager’s exasperation.Goals: Dabizas (39) 1-0; Lee (42) 2-0; Speed (58) 3-0; Di Matteo (77) 3-1.Newcastle United (4-4-2): Given; Dabizas, Howey (Watson, 45), Pearce, Pistone; Barton, Lee (Hamilton, 83), Batty, Speed; Shearer, Andersson (Barnes, 80). That would make all the hum-drum offerings of the past months just about forgiveable.Dalglish acknowledges: “Sometimes the way we’ve played has not been to everyone’s satisfaction, but I’ve got no complaints about the commitment.

Vialli’s defiance was obsessive whilst those about him seemed already to be focusing on the European Cup-Winners’ Cup final.Newcastle may now indulge in a little Cup final planning of their own, and it would be altogether consistent with the “Lucky Kenny” tag if Dalglish denied Arsenal at Wembley. Individually, however, they are likely to require substantial restructuring if they are to advance from their current positions.
Newcastle overwhelmed Chelsea in the concluding fixture of the current campaign at St James’ Park with sheer willpower, the intensity of their football befitting the significance of the occasion and finally answering the exhortations of their long-tormented fans. The spectre of relegation had been banished and the relief exploded over Tyneside.Chelsea, of course, were not driven by the same cause and consequently could not – with the notable exception of their player-manager – maintain the same level of commitment and discipline.Gianluca Vialli’s over-zealous contribution, doubtless generated by the frustration over the inadequacies of his colleagues, might have cost him a second yellow card and expulsion, an irony not lost on the much-villified Alan Shearer.But then Shearer presumably understands a player who cares until it hurts. Newcastle United 3 Chelsea 1

BETWEEN them these two teams might well be able to muster a combination capable of a viable and sustained championship challenge next season.

Substitute not used: Dinning.Sheffield United (4-4-2): Tracey; Short, Holdsworth, Sandford, Quinn; Devlin, Wilder, Marker (Morris 52), Hamilton; Katchuro (Taylor 62), Saunders. Substitute not used: Connor.Referee: C Wilkes (Gloucester).Bookings: Stockport: Cooper, McIntosh; Sheffield United: Devlin, MarkerMan of the match: Byrne.Attendance: 9,683.. The boys were running on empty.”United survived two penalty appeals during a frenetic spell, early in the second half But the pressure was incessant, and the goal inevitable. Cooper, positioned just outside the area, wide on the left, scooped the ball towards the far top corner, Tracey was stranded, and County had a lead that was never seriously threatened.Goal: Cooper (62) 1-0.Stockport County (4-4-2): Nixon; Connelly, Flynn, McIntosh, Searle; Phillips, Walwork, Byrne, Cooper (Woodthorpe 82); Wilbraham (Grant 69), Angell. That’s our 60th game of the season, our fourth cup final in eight days, and hopefully we’ve got another three to come Five of our players were only 60 per cent fit.”It showed. United simply could not produce the incisive front play or the drive from midfield to subject Stockport to any sustained pressure. County had their best spell early in the second half and it was enough to win the match, Kevin Cooper’s curled shot deceiving Simon Tracey.Dean Saunders, the United striker, is grateful the door to the Premiership remains open.”We’ve got there on what we did earlier in the season, not in the last fortnight.”It was crazy making us play four games in the last eight days.