In the latest of our “22 Days in May” series, KSN’s chief football writer Mike Green has been talking to an integral part of the Gillingham defence during that season – today we spotlight on GUY BUTTERS.

Guy was also part of the Play Off Final twelve months earlier when the Gills lost to Manchester City on penalties, but it was a day that the big central defender remembers only too well.

“I’ve played in some big games but the City game was the biggest crowd I’d played in front of,” he told us, “and the all-round experience of it all – playing in the Play Offs and hadn’t played at Wembley before which made it a massive plus.”

“When you’re a little kid you always think about playing at Wembley and then to actually experience it in front of that sort of crowd was tremendous, except obviously for the result.”

“Tony (Pulis) deliberately kept us in the dressing room beforehand until the City players were coming off so we had to walk past them and stare them out – everything seemed to work perfectly, the game as well with the game plan and everything.”

“We always say where did the extra time come from and there shouldn’t have been that much time added on, but you still can’t legislate for a couple of ricochets and rebounds and the ball’s in the back of your net and then the gamble of the lottery of penalties.”

When the new season started under the new manager, Guy’s name was missing as he explained “I was out of favour,” he told us.

“I think that Tony wanted to sign me for Bristol City – but I was quite happy at Gillingham. I kept saying that if I got a longer-term contract I would commit to the club and they were just willing to offer me an extra year, which wasn’t any good to me at that point.”

“The season didn’t start well and I was working my way back to the squad and I was on the bench for the game at Cambridge and came off the bench and scored and literally on the coach on the way back, Peter (Taylor) asked me not to go without seeing him when I got off.”

“As soon as I got off the coach, he offered me a longer deal which I signed on the Monday! From then I think I played for the rest of the season…”

Gillingham lost the final League game at Wrexham as Guy recalled, “The night before the game, their keeper Kevin Dearden, who I knew from Spurs and some of the others knew from Brentford, came to the hotel, and I was joking with him that they had nothing to play for so he could “throw” a couple in for us.”

“The next day, he had an absolute worldy – we hammered him. He pulled off one save from me from about eight yards that I smashed, and he managed to tip it over the bar – he never made a save like that in his life! They then won the game with a worldy from thirty yards!”

“In the dressing room after the game, Peter said that it was perhaps written in the stars that we’d go through the Play Offs! It was all about the character of the team, the character of the players – we all stuck together; we played hard on the pitch and play hard off it as well. We stuck together and when it mattered, we were all there for each other.”

And so into the Play Offs and a Semi Final with Stoke. Guy told us, “The atmosphere at Stoke was unbelievable – we were two-nil down straight away. It was then three-one going into injury time and their manager was doing his nut that we were still playing when Hessie cut in and hit it, I thought “get in” – it was a great strike!”

“It made you think that maybe it was our year as it could have gone anywhere – he could have hit another nine of them and they’d all have gone into the crowd!”

“You knew that getting them back to our place would be an atmosphere as there had been the previous year against Preston – it was a great atmosphere under the lights and at our place it wasn’t going to be an easy ride for them, but what a night that was!”

Once again, the Kent football family descended on Wembley in their numbers – a point that wasn’t lost on the players. “It was tremendous – I just wish the celebration photos could have been taken in front of them rather than in front of empty Wigan seats.”

“I’ve still got those two games in my head when you walk out and look round and think “wow” it’s like a sea of your own fans – must have been a burglar’s paradise around Gillingham that day as everyone came out.”

Guy then recalled the two extra time goals that won promotion. “You’ve got to look at the two deliveries,” he said.

“The one from Ty Gooden and the other from Junior Lewis – as soon as that came on Butts’ (Steve Butler) head you know that’s a goal and you watch Thommo’s (Andy Thomson) movement to his goal, the way he took the player away and then cut across him as the lad slipped.”

“As soon as that happened, you knew he’d got him, but again… I was thinking “please not penalties again” because that would have been soul destroying.”

“I remember getting on coach after the game and there were loads of bottles of beer and we were peeling the labels off and smothering the coach with them.”

“We got back to the hotel in Maidstone and then the open top bus ride on the next day which to start with was like Mike Bassett with the trees hitting everyone – it was good in that respect that everyone was still “merry” – it was brilliant; how football has changed!”

Next time we focus on a member of Deal Town’s winning side who could have easily been their hero that day – we speak to Phil Turner.