Championship play-offs: Brentford come from behind to beat Bournemouth; Swansea hold on against Barnsley
A review of Saturday's Championship play-off action as Brentford and Swansea secured their places at Wembley.
Swansea 1-1 Barnsley (agg: 2-1)
Swansea survived a late Barnsley surge to book a Sky Bet Championship final date with Brentford at Wembley.
The Swans held on for a winner-takes-all shot at Premier League football on May 29 by drawing 1-1 at the Liberty Stadium for a 2-1 aggregate victory.
Matt Grimes had doubled their first-leg lead with a superb strike before half-time, but Barnsley were given hope of turning the tie around when Cauley Woodrow fired home 19 minutes from the end of a full-blooded affair.
Barnsley piled on the pressure in the closing stages but were unable to find the equaliser that would have taken this play-off semi-final into extra time.
Swansea supporters – 3,000 of them – were back inside the Liberty Stadium for the first time in 443 days after the easing of Covid-19 restrictions in Wales.
Barnsley won a League One play-off final between the two clubs in 2006 but they had not scored against Swansea this term, despite having 34 goal attempts in three losing causes.
Tykes boss Valerien Ismael shook up his forward line with Carlton Morris and Victor Adeboyejo replacing Daryl Dike and Dominik Frieser from Monday’s defeat at Oakwell.
The opening exchanges mirrored the first leg with space at a premium and neither side able to build up a head of steam.
Andre Ayew, who had settled the first game with a brilliant individual goal, was slipped through by Jamal Lowe but Barnsley goalkeeper Brad Collins charged from his goal to smother well.
Morris had a brief sight of goal at the other end but the opening was snuffed out by Marc Guehi’s fine tackle.
There had not been a single attempt on target but that was to change in dramatic fashion after 39 minutes.
Veteran wideman Wayne Routledge, possibly playing his final game at the Liberty Stadium after 10 years as a Swansea player, battled superbly to win a free-kick wide on the left.
Collins punched Conor Hourihane’s kick to the edge of the area where Jay Fulton headed the ball into the path of Grimes.
The midfielder was under pressure but some nifty footwork deceived Callum Brittain and he found the corner of the net superbly from 18 yards.
Barnsley responded with a double substitution at half-time as Dike and Jordan Williams were sent on and Brittain switched inside.
Dike’s presence gave Barnsley a muscular focal point and Swansea also reorganised after Routledge appeared to extend his knee and had to be carried off.
Barnsley began to risk numbers forward and Freddie Woodman was forced into his first save after 64 minutes, the Swansea goalkeeper pushing away Morris’ header from a Callum Styles corner.
Williams was then left unmarked at the far post but Jake Bidwell blocked his shot superbly to leave Ismael holding his head in his hands on the touchline.
But the manager was jumping for joy after 71 minutes as Williams scampered down the right and pulled the ball back for Woodrow to sweep home from the edge of the area.
Swansea substitute Korey Smith should have settled matters when through one-on-one with Collins, but Steve Cooper’s side held on and will now have the opportunity to avenge last season’s play-off defeat to Brentford.
Brentford 3-1 Bournemouth (agg: 3-2)
Brentford won a breathless play-off semi-final as goals from Ivan Toney, Vitaly Janelt and Marcus Forss saw them come from behind to sink Bournemouth.
The result will have been a welcome one for Sporting Life readers as tipster Joe Rindl correctly put up Brentford to qualify at 9/5.
Already a goal down from the first leg, they trailed 2-0 on aggregate when Arnaut Danjuma fired the visitors ahead after only five minutes.
But Bournemouth lost Chris Mepham to a first-half red card and Toney equalised from the penalty spot, before second-half strikes from Janelt and Forss fired the Bees to a 3-1 victory, 3-2 on aggregate.
Having not played in the top flight since 1947, Brentford are now back at Wembley a year after they missed out to Fulham in the play-off final.
Bees boss Thomas Frank had embarked on a lap of the pitch before kick-off, whipping up the 4,500 fans able to attend as Covid restrictions loosen.
But their enthusiasm was dampened by a 60-yard dash from Danjuma after only five minutes.
Danjuma, who scored the winner in the first leg, latched on to a clearance from a Brentford corner, looking up to see three-quarters of the pitch empty in front of him.
The Dutch winger raced clear to slot the ball past Bees keeper David Raya and double Bournemouth’s lead in the tie.
But Brentford were handed a lifeline in the 15th minute when a cross from Emiliano Marcondes hit the arm of Lloyd Kelly as he slid in to block.
With no away fans present you could have heard a pin drop as Toney stepped up to take the penalty, but the striker calmly slotted home his 32nd goal of the season to haul his side level on the day.
Bournemouth, already indulging in persistent timewasting to the evident frustration of Frank, were reduced to 10 men after 28 minutes when former Bees defender Mepham saw red for bringing down Bryan Mbeumo.
Toney should have levelled the tie but somehow fluffed a free header at the far post from a Sergi Canos cross, before Henrik Dalsgaard’s header was cleared off the line by Diego Rico.
Five minutes into the second half Brentford were level on aggregate after the ball pinged around the Bournemouth penalty area.
It eventually found Janelt on the edge of the box, and his unorthodox shot looped and swerved its way past the diving Asmir Begovic and into the far corner.
They poured forward against the tiring 10 men and with 20 minutes left Mbeumo’s cross found Toney, but the striker’s volley flew over the crossbar.
Marcondes’ curler was then beaten away by Begovic, but the goal was coming, and it arrived with 10 minutes remaining.
Marcondes got away down the left and cut the ball back for Forss, who arrived at the near post to prod the ball home and spark delirium around Brentford’s new ground.
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