By Tony Leighton

Incredible victories over Liverpool and Chelsea en route to a Wembley FA Cup semi-final have made the 2007-08 campaign hugely memorable for Barnsley, who just as importantly have ensured they will be in the Championship again next season after sliding uncomfortably towards the relegation zone.

Captain Brian Howard, who hit the winner against Liverpool on a thrilling afternoon at Anfield, has also had a tremendous season on a personal level with 14 goals - the best season's haul in his career - as the Tykes head into their final match with a visit to Cardiff City, the team they lost to in that FA Cup semi.

The Ninian Park encounter is one of only two Championship games that will have no bearing on issues at either the top or bottom of the table as teams battle it out on either the promotion or relegation front. But as Howard assesses Sunday's big issues around the division, he reckons that his team also have something to play for.

"We'll be looking for a bit of revenge for our FA Cup defeat," says the midfielder. "It was great to get to Wembley but, after beating Liverpool and Chelsea, we wanted to get to the final and not just be content with a semi at Wembley. It was a fantastic run though, and it will be remembered for a long time in Barnsley.

"Having our focus on the Cup maybe affected our League form, particularly as Cup ties meant having to postpone League games and in the end we were playing catch-up with quite a few games to make up. We came through though, and we'll end up with a fair few points more than last season so I'd say it's been a good campaign all round for us.

"I think the Championship as a whole has been tremendous. Usually there's a team that runs away with it but this season it's been so tight - until the last few games anybody in the top half of the table could have ended up with promotion and anybody in the bottom half could have gone down.

"There have been no gimmees - we're bottom half but we've beaten West Brom, Watford, Stoke and Bristol City at home. It's our away form that's let us down, but hopefully we can go out on a winning note away on Sunday and then take a look at what's happened elsewhere in the League.

"It's going to be a fantastic last day. West Brom are already promoted unless there's a couple of absolutely freak results, but who'll go up with them? It's in Stoke's hands but they might find it tough against Leicester, who are fighting for their lives, and although Hull are the form team they've got to go to Ipswich who still have a Play-Off chance. 

"If Ipswich, Wolves or Sheffield United sneak into the Play-Offs then the other teams should beware - if you get into that top six on the last day of the season it's a massive bonus and that can help teams when they're up against opponents who have maybe been top two for a while and disappointed not to have gone up automatically.

"At the bottom it's just as tight. As a Southampton boy I hope it's not Saints who go down although it will be very hard against Sheffield United. Sheffield Wednesday will be boosted by a big home crowd against Norwich and they should be okay, so I think it will be Leicester who'll probably to go down with Scunthorpe and Colchester."