Planet Swans ArchivesLeon Britton was the unlikely first goalscorer for Swansea City on Monday night when he curled a left footed shot past Lee Camp to give them the lead against Nottingham Forest at the Liberty Stadium.
And having survived the Swans battle against relegation in 2003, things have come full swing for Britton after his six month exile from the club at the start of this season.
“There were some great celebrations at the end,” Britton told the Western Mail. “It was one of my greatest moments in my time at Swansea and probably is one of the highlights of my career.
“And it’s got to be the best game I’ve been involved in because any player who hasn’t played in the Premier league dreams of playing there – and I’m one of them.
“It’s nice to think that when I started at this club we were bottom of the Football League and now eight years down the line we’re 90 minutes away from getting to the top division in arguably the best league in the world. We’ll all remember those scenes for years to come.
“I just thought I’d swing my left foot and see where it goes, it was just a case of me coming inside and I had a bit of time so I thought, ‘Why not have a strike?’
“On another day it probably would have trickled through to the keeper, but thankfully it went in.
“It was a great feeling – but it didn’t matter who scores because it was about us getting the win.
“It was really nerve-wracking at times; the second half was unbelievable when they hit the crossbar and the post right at the death before Prats (Darren Pratley) went away and scored the goal that sealed it.
“But when that went in it was such a brilliant feeling. I was somewhere near the 18-yard box when he hit it – and it was a great finish from the halfway line.
“To do that in the 93rd minute with everything riding on the game was superb.
“It was a fantastic game to be involved in – but even better at the end to be on the winning side.
“I’ve never been to Wembley before as a player and now we’re there it’s a great chance to get into the Premier League,” he said.
“It will be a really special day and will be something to enjoy – but we’ve got to prepare for it beforehand and be ready.
“We’ll come down from this. It’s two weeks away so we’ve got a bit of time to recover and get a bit of rest.
“We’ll enjoy the next couple of days, but we’re professional and we know not to get too far ahead of ourselves and keep our feet on the ground.
“It’s a great achievement for the club and everyone involved, previous managers, previous players and the board, it’s been a great effort but there’s one more big effort left and obviously that’s at Wembley.
“We know what it means to the fans. All week people have been pulling us aside and saying they couldn’t wait for the Forest game – and I’m sure it will be even more of the case with the final.
“But we will be focused because all we want to do is get to the Premier League.”
