The highlight of my career to date has to be the League 1 Play-off final in 2005, playing for Sheffield Wednesday against Hartlepool.

 

The Owls eventually ran out 4-2 winners after extra-time to gain promotion to the Championship.

 

Watching videos of that day still give me goosebumps. It was, in a footballing sense, the best day of my life.

 

The fans that day were unbelievable.

 

Forty thousand Wednesdayites made the trip down to the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff that day, including a mini bus full of my family. It made the day even more special that they were all there to share what was an incredible day.

 

I remember vividly the bus journey from our hotel to the stadium. As we approached the ground through the city centre all we could see were thousands of supporters who had lined the streets. It was a sea of blue and white cheering us on and it certainly gave us all motivation and inspiration to perform. It was quite astonishing and unforgettable.

 

The celebrations after the match were incredible. We stopped off at a service station on the way back to Sheffield and it was manic.

The services were full of Wednesday fans and it was a carnival atmosphere. Everybody was singing and dancing. I bet the people working there had never seen anything like it before.

 

Once we got back to Sheffield the party carried on, but I hit a bit of a lull. I was mentally drained. It was a really hot day and the game had taken its toll on me. I was shattered, but I more than made up for it by celebrating for the next few days.

 

It was mind-blowing to play in that football match, and it is a day I will never forget.