Alex Neil is ready to party after leading Norwich City to the Premier League: Neil clinched a second consecutive promotion after guiding Hamilton to the Scottish top flight 12 months to the day the Canaries eased past Boro.
Cameron Jerome and Nathan Redmond struck in the first half in a polished display by Neil’s men in front of 39,500 travelling supporters.
Russell Martin lifted the play-off trophy before majority shareholders Delia Smith and Michael Wynn-Jones joined the celebrations on the pitch at the final whistle.
“I’m going to get a couple of beers and see my family and then look forward to heading off on holiday later this week,” he said. “The goal was to gain promotion. We aimed for automatic. It was difficult but we got close. Than it was important that we remained focused. Felt the squad we had was a strong as anyone. Esp in one-off games like this, I thought the big players rose to the occasion and made the difference.
“One thing we were criticised for in the last game was a slow start. We knew how important the first goal was.
“I don’t look back. People have made a lot of the last year. But it’s not a huge concern to me. I set goals, like setting promotion. I’m really determined to achieve those goals. I don’t get overawed by anyone or any place.
“I’m not silly. I know how big the task is. We’ll be one of the smallest clubs going into the PL. But clubs of similar size do OK. I did it with Hamilton. Our job is to compete.
