JONES WANTS TO SWELL NATIONAL PRIDE
Dave Jones hopes he has given the Welsh people an even stronger sense of pride having guided Cardiff to within 90 minutes of becoming the first team from outside England to compete in the Barclays Premier League.
The Bluebirds will meet Blackpool in the Coca-Cola Championship final at Wembley on May 22 after triumphing 4-3 on penalties in a rollercoaster semi-final second leg against Leicester on Wednesday night which finished 3-3 on aggregate after extra time.
In the build-up to the encounter Jones admitted promotion to the top flight would be "life-changing for everybody in south Wales", not just the capital city club as they battle to rid themselves of debt.
Cardiff last competed among England's elite back in 1962, while fierce local rivals Swansea did so in 1983, and Jones knows how much promotion would mean to a country considered by many as traditionally rugby mad.
He said: "You saw the response at the end from these fans.
"The Welsh are very proud people and I hope I've given them something to be even more proud about.
"This club has come a long way but we've still got a long, long way to go.
"I'm proud to be manager here and I appreciate everything that has gone on. The fans made it a special occasion for us."
Welsh pride was aplenty prior to kick-off with national flags on show around an electric Cardiff City Stadium, the country's mother tongue reverberating through song around the ground and over the tannoy system and soldiers from The Royal Welsh regiment and HMS Richmond parading on the pitch.
But it is easy to forget Cardiff are no small club and this will be their third trip to the revamped Wembley in the last two years having enjoyed an FA Cup semi-final and final back in 2008.
It promises to be an exciting finale for chairman Peter Ridsdale who will step down at the end of the month following the confirmation of investment from the Far East.
Consortium frontman Dato Chan Tien Ghee was in tears after the final whistle and Jones knows, while they are not in the promised land just yet, it could be the continuation of something special for the Bluebirds.
"My first two years at this football club were about survival and then the next three years have been about progression," he said.
"You've seen the new stadium, you see the training facilities, you see everything that we've been trying to achieve and we've done that with all the problems off the field.
"Sometimes it's been difficult but we've just dug deep.
"I think everybody in this football club deserves a slap on the back."
In contrast, Leicester manager Nigel Pearson was left to reflect on a night of disappointment but a season of success having come so close just 12 months after promotion from League One.
The Foxes showed strong desire and spirit to fight back, and while Pearson refused to be drawn on Yann Kermorgant's costly dinked spot-kick in the shootout, he admitted change is forthcoming at the Walkers Stadium this summer.
"There's going to be a lot of changes because we've got a number of loan players, if we're going to progress we're going to have to develop the side again," he stressed.
"But right now, I don't want to talk about too far ahead. I'll let the dust settle first."
He added: "We've certainly had our critics this season, we've had plenty of people knocking us but throughout it all, as a group, they've been exceptional. I'm very proud to be their manager.
"I'll reflect on the bigger picture, we've made great strides this year. And for it to come to a penalty shootout is a pretty tough one."
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