By Stephen Eighteen
April 30 2004

To try this one out you need to shut your eyes. Ready? Okay. Go back to that unforgettable scene of when you were leaving Old Trafford to head back south on April 4. Think of all the tearful folk hugging each other in sheer jubilation as a non-stop chorus of songs reverberated inside your head by the aid of your quaking eardrums.

Amid the darkness of closed eyelids, focus on those grins that were so huge that teeth you never knew existed suddenly found the light of day on hundreds of faces you were so used to seeing posed as fixed grimaces.

Remember how, for that moment, everything you ever knew about Millwall had been thrown out of the window.

This was a new era under a manager with a midas touch and glittering past quite different to anything shown by his predecessors.

It was the time where the success of now was merely an appetiser for the promise of better to come. Surely this was the point where nothing could stop the Lions from continuing their relentless march of victories.

Now imagine if someone had made the sober proposal in that bitterly cold Manchester rain that Millwall's play off dreams would be almost terminally dashed on a freakishly hot afternoon just 20 days later.

Opened your eyes yet? Thought so, because that part of the equation just did not fit in with everything that had gone on before.

In short, we have all woken up to the fact that Dennis Wise and his Millwall players are only human after all.

That is the problem with creating history. You always assume that the maker of it has no bounds, but while there is no reference to a Millwall
FA Cup Final in the record books, a quick glance at how other clubs have fared after making their way into the showpiece paints a very similar picture to the five spectacles witnessed in those 20 days.

Whether you use the example of Middlesbrough in 1997 or Newcastle in 1999, no team, apart from big-spenders Manchester United and Arsenal, has managed to use a cup final appearance as a catalyst to achieve greater things in the interim.

Hindsight really is a smart-arse's dream, but with its benefit, it is clear that no Millwall fan should have dismissed the prospect of the play off dream reaching death's door so soon after the semi-final win.

However, you can still forgive supporters for feeling perplexed at how dramatically the side's form has dipped since April 4.

On Saturday, Millwall faced a Reading side who were strong, fit, organised and uncompromising.

Whereas the Lions, without their two Australian internationals Kevin Muscat and Tim Cahill, just could not find the same zip and purpose to their play.

The frustration was tantamount for all to see. Dennis Wise tried so desperately hard, tactically, verbally and physically, to inject some urgency and fresh ideas, but the tank was simply empty.

It was not as if Millwall's play was plagued with individual errors or a regular lack of concentration, it was just that speed and forward movement was at a premium.

These characteristics were apparent from the moment Shaun Goater put Reading ahead on sixteen minutes. The striker found space to wonderfully control a difficult side-footed volley into the corner from John Salako's left wing corner.

With Steve Sidwell and James Harper showing a physical midfield presence that has been conspicuous in the last couple of seasons against Millwall, the visitors were the better side.

Wise set up a couple of half opportunities before Ifill came close on 43 minutes. Having received a pass from Nick Chadwick, the winger turned inside and struck a wicked left footer that was touched onto the post by Jamie Ashdown.

The main constellation from the first half was that the Lions had come up against a decent side who were denying them any real space.

But after the interval it was a different affair. Reading dropped off and seemed to be content to settle for a one-goal victory. An ideal chance then, for Millwall to come back into it, but they just could not raise their game like they have so often when it has really mattered this season.

Little was being created from open play, so it was left for substitute Peter Sweeney to try and save the game.

And it so nearly happened for the youngster at the death.

Ifill's shot was handled just outside the area, and everybody in the ground, including the flat-footed goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown, was convinced that Sweeney's free kick had found the net.

But there was once again the small matter of the woodwork to deny Millwall from grabbing a face-saving equaliser.

A month ago, no doubt the double intervention of the post would not have happened, but the final scoreline did reflect the game.

Millwall were up against a side who had not gone through the same physical and psychological demands that come with reaching an FA Cup Final, and were deservedly beaten as a consequence.

And though the play offs now look unlikely, at least Wise knows that he will get a full ten months to construct a side to reach the Premiership next season.

The Millwall manager should also take heart from the view that when he took over in October, the odds of getting this close to the top six were slim.

Player ratings
MARSHALL - 6. Faultless for the goal and made very good save early on.
ELLIOTT - 7. Adapted well to the demands of right back, especially in the first half.
RYAN - 6. Back in his familiar position. Put his heart into making a second half comeback.
LAWRENCE - 6. Stood up well to what he had to deal with.
WARD - 6. Good aerial battle with Kitson, and the former Cambridge man was a handful.
IFILL - 7. Not at his best but looked the most likely to make something happen.
WISE - 6. Up against two very good midfielders. Made some decent passes though.
LIVERMORE - 6. Battled hard, and made some good covering tackles.
CHADWICK - 6. Ran his socks off but without getting much in the way of chances.
DICHIO - 6. The big man was suffering from a back complaint that seemed to inhibit his flexibility.
McCAMMON - 6. Did not get good enough service to utilise his pace.
Subs
HARRIS - 6. Did not really get into the game.
SWEENEY - 7. So very, very unfortunate with free kick and dangerous from dead balls.