Back in 2014, Tommy Rowe was the Posh skipper that lifted the EFL Trophy and ten years on, he is hoping his former club can repeat the feat.
A decade might have passed, but Tommy Rowe hasn’t changed a bit. Still steadfast in his determination to be the best version of himself on and off the pitch, he has barely changed a bit. He is still playing, under Grant McCann at Doncaster Rovers, and was keen to impart the importance of the Bristol Street Motors to his team-mates at the start of the campaign because he knows, more than most, what this competition can provide.
In 2014, Rowe was the Posh skipper. He scored the winning penalty in the shoot-out at Swindon Town in the semi-finals of the competition to send Posh to Wembley and led the team out with pride against Chesterfield in the final.
It is a moment that he will never forget. “For me to be captain of the team, having my son walk out with me onto the pitch was a huge honour and a privilege and it is something that will always live with me. I felt it was written in the stars that we would lift the trophy, we probably made it as hard for ourselves as we possibly could in the game, but sometimes that happens, we knew as a group that we had the ability to beat Chesterfield, even though they were such a great side, as we had so many match-winners in our XI.
“It was funny because we recently played Swindon Town away with Doncaster and it brought back memories of the semi-final, the shoot-out and the celebrations after and it does feel a little mad that it was 10-years ago, but I have three kids and I am still involved in football, so there are plenty of demands that keep me on my toes so maybe on reflection, it probably does feel 10-years for me!
“When you reflect on the 90 minutes against Chesterfield, I think we probably did everything that you would want to do in a final and then within moments, probably everything that you wouldn’t want to do in a final! We got ourselves into a commanding position, scoring two goals from set-pieces, that we had worked on a lot, but then we conceded in the second half and had Joe Newell sent-off.
“However, despite those challenges within the game, I felt we were very tuned into the detail at that time, we had ways of beating the opposition. We felt we could hurt them in a variety of ways. Chesterfield had a fantastic team at the time, they were probably one of the strongest sides in the competition, even though they were in League Two at the time. They had a lot of really good players who have gone on to have excellent careers.
“When they scored, they had a lot of momentum and we had to ride it out in the second half at times. I actually think in a strange way, the sending off might have helped us. It allowed us to relax a little bit. We went into a bit of a low-mid block and restricted them. Mark Little was brilliant at turning defence into attack, he was a great athlete, but he was also a thinker, he knew when to go forward and time those runs. He timed it to perfection at this moment in the game, won the spot-kick and I had no doubt that Britt Assombalonga would stick away the penalty.
“Going up the steps at Wembley to collect the trophy was something I won’t forget. That trophy was very heavy, but it was a wonderful moment lifting it alongside Grant. Unfortunately, when the champagne hits your eyes, that is when it started going downhill,” Rowe said.
Rather like this year’s final, Posh had a league game a few days so the celebrations didn’t last too long. Posh were also fighting on two fronts back in 2014, eventually losing in the play-offs to Leyton Orient over two legs.
“It was strange with the celebrations because we had a game a few days later, so the professional thing to do is get straight back on with the preparations for the next game, but the natural thing to do is to celebrate and I think you must enjoy those moments because they don’t come around very often.
“We had worked so hard to get to the final. We got our rewards. That is why this competition can be so special. At Doncaster, we got to the area quarter-final and eventually lost to Bradford City. I did an interview ahead of that game about how nice it would be to get back to Wembley, ten-years on from the last experience and of course the irony is that we were beaten and Posh are back there!
“I am delighted to see the club back at Wembley. It meant so much to me captaining the side. I am sure if it is Harrison Burrows leading out the team it will be a incredible moment for him because he was there as a fan back in 2014 and has come through the Academy.
“It shows how much work has gone into the Academy behind the scenes since I left the club, players are now coming through and making a huge impact in the first team. When you have the confidence and the authority to grab the ball in a semi-final and stick the penalty away like Harrison did, you know he has the temperament to go far in the game.
“I really hope that Posh can win the trophy again. It will be a special day for everyone involved at the club and I wish the gaffer, his management team and the players good luck for the final,” Rowe said.
You can watch the full interview with Tommy, which was conducted on Zoom, on Posh+.
