They’ll be dancing in the streets of Hanley and Newcastle-under-Lyme after Stoke City bagged themselves the second automatic promotion spot on Sunday. The Potters have done magnificently this season, coming from behind on several occasions to land wins or draws against Championship opponents and it’s hard to argue that they don’t deserve their place in the Premier League next season.

Quite whether they’ll stay there for longer than a season is another matter. Many have commented that this season’s Championship has been bereft of quality, with West Brom winning the league with the lowest points total for over two decades. Not that the Baggies or Stoke care at this particular moment in time, with the BBC reporting Tony Pulis, the manager of the latter, in a bullish mood.

“I have to say a special ‘thank you’ to the chairman. Peter showed a lot of character to buy this club and spent a lot of money on it.

“This is a great day for this club and an opportunity for us to build and push on for next year.”

However, the fun starts next week when Pulis and Coates have to start planning for next season. With just eleven points on the board this season, Derby County have demonstrated how promotion to the top flight can go terribly wrong and while the Rams will be much richer for their season in the big time, it’s obvious that the promoted three will be desperate not to disgrace themselves in such a manner.

The new boys will take heart from Sunderland’s efforts this season, a team who were floundering in mid-table of the Championship when Roy Keane took over and have now completed a successful season of consolidation in the Premier League. Birmingham too have shown that the gulf between the teams at the bottom of the top flight and the top of the second division isn’t that great, while the Baggies and Potters will also be confident of finishing above at least one other team – the one who is promoted through the play-offs and has less time to prepare for the new campaign.

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