Hartlepool United legend reflects on memories of famous 2005 League One play-off final "tinged with a little bit of sadness"

It is now two decades since Pools went within a whisker of reaching the Championship for the first time in the club's history, only to be denied by a cruel twist of fate in the form of a hugely contentious refereeing decision.

Pools had a rocky road to the final, which was held at the Millennium Stadium, but were on the cusp of an historic promotion when Chris Westwood was sent off, conceding a penalty in the process, nine minutes from time.

Pools, who finished sixth in the regular season, parted company with inimitable manager Neal Cooper with one game of the campaign remaining, instead putting their faith in former Sunderland and Bristol City full-back Martin Scott. Having beaten Tranmere 2-0 in the semi-final first leg thanks to a brace from the prolific Adam Boyd, Pools suffered a two-goal reverse in the second leg and needed penalties to book their spot in the final, with Dimi Konstantopoulos saving two Rovers spot-kicks.

Taking on Sheffield Wednesday in a memorable final, Pools went behind following Jon-Paul McGovern's strike late in the first half but turned the game on its head thanks to substitutes Eifion Williams and Jon Daly, who scored 20 minutes from time with his first touch since his introduction.

Pools, then, looked to have one foot in the Championship when Chris Westwood tussled with Drew Talbot in the area nine minutes from time, prompting referee Phil Crossley to award Wednesday a penalty and give Westwood his marching orders; to this day it remains a hugely controversial decision, with Westwood branding it as "life-changing". Steven MacLean stepped up and converted from 12 yards to take the game to extra time.

Pools, now down to 10 men, produced a valiant performance in the additional 30 minutes but were undone by goals from Glenn Whelan and Talbot, who added his second of the afternoon, as Wednesday secured promotion to the second tier. It was a bitter blow for Pools, who were so agonisingly close; still reeling from the disappointment, Pools were relegated to League One the following season.

For Barron, who captained the side on that fateful day, reflecting on the match and all that went with it is bittersweet, even 20 years on. On the one hand, the former Pools skipper, who made 374 appearances and helped the club to two promotions, admits it ranks as among the biggest and proudest days of his professional career. On the other hand, Pools were so close to making history, and there will always be a sense of disappointment and frustration; after all, the outcome could have been so different had referee Phil Crossley looked more kindly on Westwood, who made next to no contact with Talbot inside the area.

"I can't believe it's been that long to be honest," Barron said.

"When you hear that it's 20 years ago, it seems like a long time.

"The whole day was amazing, it's probably the biggest and proudest day of my career, but it's still tinged with a little bit of sadness about the result. Until Westy got sent off and the penalty decision, I think we had a chance of going on and winning the game.

"I'm immensely proud of the team, the fans and the town on the day, how they all got behind us. There's still that sadness that we didn't manage to get promoted and get up into the Championship.

"I didn't really watch it back for a long time, then I actually showed my boys it the other day and they were like 'that's never a pen dad'. You sort of get more and more bitter every time you see it. Like Westy said, it was life-changing for us. As a squad and as a team, to get into the Championship would have been incredible. We probably deserved to get there that year; we had a brilliant team and we played some good football but it wasn't to be.

"It's something that you look back on and wonder what could have happened. Could we have gone up there and stayed in the Championship, held our own for a couple of years? It could have been so different."