They already have a stadium fit for the Premiership and now Bolton Wanderers, once again, will be consumed by the heady notion of rejoining the game's aristocracy.
Third time lucky? They will certainly hope so. Two years ago, under the stewardship of Colin Todd, this famous old club succumbed to Watford. Last season there were bitter recriminations after being dispatched by Ipswich in the semi-finals. Now, having achieved this ultimately resounding victory, they will head to Cardiff on May 28th aiming for the prize of top-flight football.
It is beyond dispute that the better side prevailed but it is hard, all the same, not to feel a certain amount of pity for a West Brom side who have been absent from the top flight for 16 years and who begun the season as a team tipped for relegation.
It was inconceivable that Bolton would be as lethargic as they had been in the drawn first leg, against a side that finished 13 points and three rungs below them on the First Division ladder and within 10 minutes of a frenetic encounter their greater sense of adventure paid off.
Michael Appleton upended Bo Hansen on the left flank and Simon Charlton floated a cross into the six-yard area and Gudni Bergsson, having temporarily vacated his position at the spine of Bolton's defence, took advantage of some static marking to flick out his right knee and divert the ball beyond the exposed Russell Hoult.
Jason Roberts had already struck the outside of Matt Clarke's right-hand post after a typically forceful run and Lee Hughes was an indefatigable threat as Megson's team sought to re-assert themselves.
Yet for all their industry, Clarke was seldom called upon and after the interval Allardyce's team began to take command.
It was inevitable that as West Brom went in search of an equaliser a few gaps would open in their defence and, just after the hour, Ricardo Gardner capitalised on the increasing amount of space Bolton were finding.
As Gardner found space on the left, his run was picked out superbly by Anthony Barness's raking cross-field pass and the Jamaican international cut inside before lashing an angled drive into the opposite corner.
This time there was no comeback. With a minute left substitute Michael Ricketts broke clear, shrugged off Larus Sigurdsson and rounded Hoult for Bolton's third.
BOLTON: Clarke, Barness, Bergsson, Hendry (Whitlow 87), Charlton, Frandsen, Hansen, Farrelly, Nolan (Ricketts 88), Holdsworth (Marshall 76), Gardner. Subs Not Used: Banks, Summerbee. Booked: Hendry, Holdsworth. Goals: Bergsson 10, Gardner 63, Ricketts 90.
WEST BROM: Hoult, Butler, Gilchrist (Sigurdsson 67), Clement, Lyttle, Fox, Appleton, Sneekes (Jordao 64), Van Blerk (Taylor 64), Hughes, Roberts. Subs Not Used: Jensen, Cummings. Booked: Appleton.
Referee: R Pearson (Peterlee).
