Watford are just 90 minutes from a return to the top flight for the first time in 11 years after reaching the play-off final in the most heartbreaking fashion.

Manager Graham Taylor is now just a Wembley showdown against Bolton away from masterminding the seventh promotion of his career and the second in successive seasons.

But after 120 nerve-wracking minutes, it eventually took 16 penalties to decide the tie with Watford keeper Alec Chamberlain the hero and City midfielder Chris Holland - number 13 after 13 successful spot-kicks - the lonely, forlorn figure.

The game started in dramatic fashion when Dele Adebola scored his 17th goal of the season, and probably one of the most bizarre of his career, as the ball eventually went in when deflecting off his elbow after two minutes to put the sides level on aggregate.

Afterwards Taylor in praising his team said: "I've been through penalty shoot-outs before and all you can do is support the players because they are on the nervewracking end. I am very pleased but in the game itself we very rarely put the ball across the face of the goal."

BIRMINGHAM: Poole, Rowett, Grainger, Adebola (Holland 64), Holdsworth, Johnson, McCarthy (Purse 57), O'Connor (Bradbury 99), Furlong, Hughes, Ndlovu. Sent Off: Holdsworth (54). Booked: Holdsworth, Grainger. Goals: Adebola 2.

WATFORD: Chamberlain, Bazeley, Kennedy, Page, Palmer, Gibbs, Ngonge (Smart 87), Hyde, Mooney, Johnson, Wright (Hazan 87). Subs Not Used: Day. Booked: Palmer, Kennedy, Ngonge, Gibbs, Smart.

Referee: D Pugh (Wirral).