Manager Paul Simpson revealed ahead of the home leg of the play-off semi-final that he’d had the group taking penalties all week, with a lesson he’d learned at the FA at the forefront of his mind when it came to taking that method of settling a game into account.
“It was something we sat down and talked about and it became a case of making sure you prepared for penalties rather than practiced them,” he explained.
“The thing is, you can put the ball on the spot during training but you can’t ever replicate the pressure of the actual situation, or what will be going through the player’s mind when it comes to that moment.
“That’s why we’ve had the lads doing them, not so much to practice but, like I say, to make sure they’ve prepared as much as they can.
“Of course on the day it’s about the moment, that will never change.”
“Like I say, we’ll continue to do them in training because it’s not that I’m expecting it to go to penalties, it’s just in case it does,” he continued.
“You simply can’t create the emotions that will be going through your mind, but you can prepare for them by coming up with whatever process you want to do to take one.
“People sometimes say it’s luck, but it’s not. It’s a skill, and if you can hone those skills by doing it repetitively then you’ve got a better chance of being successful.
“I hope it doesn’t come to it and we can deal with it in 90 minutes, but if it does then we’ll be prepared. That doesn’t mean we’ll be better prepared, but we’ll be prepared for it.”
Another addition to the final that will be a first for the Blues is VAR, which will be in operation throughout the tie.
“I think it was a decision made the EFL board without consultation with anyone else that VAR would be introduced for the final,” he commented.
“I’m not saying it’s wrong, it is what it is. That decision has been made and it’ll be interesting to see how it’s implemented.
“However, it is unusual when we’ve had 48 games without it. You’d think we’d have gone with the competition rules as they were, but this is a new ruling and we get on with it.
“Like I say, it’ll be interesting to see how it’s used. Apparently it will be in the spirit of the way League Two has been officiated, with fewer referrals and things like that, but we’ll see.
“It’s another interesting one.”
