Brentford midfielder Sam Saunders believes occasions like Saturday are the reason why people should want to become footballers.
Sam, who joined Sky Bet League Two side Wycombe Wanderers on loan in February, will be looking to help The Chairboys back to League One as they take on Southend United in the League Two Play-Off final at Wembley Stadium.
With a crowd of more than 40,000 expected at Wembley for the match tomorrow Sam said it is the kind of game that you dream of playing in.
Speaking to Bees Player ahead of the match Sam said: “The mood is good and everyone is looking forward to it.
“A lot of the boys haven’t played there before so they are excited.
“I haven’t seen any nerves in training so far.
“I am sure when it comes to the big day there will be a few little jitters but it is up to the experienced players who have been there before to get around them and to tell them to continue what they have been doing.
“The young lads, who have never been in this situation before, have shown a lot of character in these last two Play-Off matches.
“They have performed very well and hopefully they do the same on Saturday.
“Hopefully I have been able to bring a bit of a cool head.
“These boys have been here all year and I have almost come from the outside in.
“I do really care but I can also take a step back and be a bit more thoughtful in the process of the game.
“The boys have been intense all season so hopefully I can bring a bit of calmness.
“I love big games and the reason why I came here was to play big games and to get that 3 o’clock buzz that I missed.
“This is what you are in football for.
“You train Monday to Friday for these big games on Saturday.
“Unfortunately I wasn’t getting that at Brentford so I am delighted to be getting that here.
“This is what you train every day for and this is why you want to be a footballer.
“If you don’t want to play in these big games then you shouldn’t be a footballer.
“I am counting down the days to Saturday now and the sooner it gets here the better.”
Wycombe’s squad this season is a mix of youth and experience with seasoned professionals like Sam Saunders, Matt Bloomfield and Paul Hayes mixed in with youngsters learning their way in the game.
Sam is one of the few players in Wycombe’s squad with Play-Off final experience, albeit in a 2-1 defeat to Yeovil Town with Brentford in 2013.
The 31-year-old said it is important at Wembley to play the game and not the occasion and that is something that he has tried to impress upon some of the younger members of the squad.
The former Dagenham and Redbridge player believes that it is important to try to enjoy the day and the atmosphere but it is much easier to enjoy that atmosphere when you have won.
“I would tell the boys just to enjoy it,” said Sam.
“There are not many times where you would get a chance to showcase yourself on a platform like Wembley in front of a big crowd.
“You need to soak it in and enjoy every single second but do what you have been doing all season that has obviously been working.
“The boys won’t need a team-talk, all the gaffer will need to say is for the boys to enjoy themselves and play their football.
“That is what has got them there.
“It is all about having a cool head but playing with fire in your belly.
“When you get the ball you need to keep a calm head and try to play your usual game.
“You can’t change things because of the occasion.
“We have a game-plan for Saturday and everyone needs to play to that.
“If we do that then we have got a chance.
“They are great days to go there and play at Wembley but to come away with a winners medal, and having done what you set out to do, is the aim for me.”
Wycombe spent almost all of this season in the automatic promotion spots in League Two before being pipped over the final couple of matches by Bury.
The Shakers won 13 of their last 16 matches to storm into the last promotion spot on the final day of the season.
Sam, along with fellow Brentford loanee Nico Yennaris, joined in February to help The Chairboys after they had gone on a run of four wins from 12 games at the start of the year.
After their arrival Gareth Ainsworth’s side lost only three of their last 14 games and Sam admits it was nice to be able to help the side to get their rewards for their hard work over the whole season.
“The gaffer said at the time that they just needed a bit of a boost because they were running out of steam,” said Sam.
“They lost a few players in the January window and picked up a couple of injuries as well so we came in at a good time.
“Our form was good and we picked up a good number of points but the form of Bury was unbelievable with the number of points they picked up in the last 10 games of the season.
“It was a shame that the amount of points we had wasn’t enough as any other time we would have gone up as champions.
“That was the way it was this year so we have had to do it the hard way but also the best way.
“If we can go up on Saturday it will be a fantastic achievement for the boys.
“The boys have worked so hard all season.
“Myself and Nico have come at the back end of it and we just want to try and get the job done for the lads who have worked so hard already.”
Since joining Sam has started 13 times for the Buckinghamshire side, scoring in the wins over Luton Town and Exeter City.
Having endured an injury hit 2014 which saw him play just five times all year Sam is thankful to be back and having an extended run of games.
“I have started every game that I have been available for and played pretty much 90 minutes every game,” said Sam.
“My knee has been good and it is nice to get a run of games.
“I have missed that at Brentford.
“I got injured at the time where I was just getting a run of games.
“I got back fit and the boys were flying and I couldn’t get back in.
“It was a very frustrating period for me.
“To get out and play some games, not at the standard I would ideally be playing at, was important for me to show people that I am around, able to play 90 minutes and that my knee is good.”
There could be as many as seven current or former Brentford players in the Wycombe line-up for tomorrow’s match with Southend.
Alongside the loan trio of Sam Saunders, Alfie Mawson and Nico Yennaris, Paul Hayes, Sam Wood, Aaron Pierre and Marcus Bean have all passed through Griffin Park in recent years.
For Sam having that Brentford flavour to the squad made it easy for him to settle and was one of the things that first attracted him to Adams Park.
“A lot of the lads have come through Brentford as either young lads who haven’t had the opportunity, players that have been there or people like myself and Nico who have been in and out,” said Sam.
“There is a big influence of Brentford players and that was one of the lures of coming down here.
“I knew a lot of the lads.
“I knew they were good lads and we know each other’s games.
“It was quite helpful for the boys that they knew me and Nico.
“We fitted straight in as we trained on the Friday and played on the Saturday.
“All the other lads have been good and welcomed us as well.
“We seem to have a little link at the moment with Wycombe and Brentford and it seems to be working well.”