2002 Football League First Division play-off Final  The 2002 Football League First Division play-off Final was an association football match which was played on 12 May 2002 at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, between Birmingham City and Norwich City. The match was to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from the Football League First Division, the second tier of English football, to the Premiership. The top two teams of the 2001–02 Football League First Division season gained automatic promotion to the Premier League, while the teams placed from third to sixth place in the table partook in play-off semi-finals; Birmingham ended the season in fifth position while Norwich finished sixth. The winners of these semi-finals competed for the final place for the 2001–02 season in the Premiership. Winning the game was estimated to be worth up to £30million to the successful team. The game ended goalless in regular time sending the match into extra time. Seconds into the first half, Iwan Roberts put Norwich ahead with a header from an Alex Notman cross. Eleven minutes later, Birmingham's Geoff Horsfield scored the equaliser. Stern John nodded the ball across the Norwich penalty area allowing Horsfield to head the ball in, making it 1–1. No further goals were scored meaning the game had to be decided by a penalty shootout. Philip Mulryne's spot kick was saved by Birmingham City's goalkeeper Nico Vaesen, while Daryl Sutch's strike missed. Birmingham scored all their penalties with Darren Carter taking the winning strike, making it 4–2. Norwich City ended the following season in eighth place in the 2002–03 Football League First Division, five points below the play-offs. Birmingham City's next season]] saw them finish in thirteenth place in the 2002–03 Premiership, six points above the relegation zone. Birmingham City finished the regular 2001–02 season in third place in Football League First Division, the second tier of the English football league system, one place ahead of Norwich City. Both therefore missed out on the two automatic places for promotion to the Premiership and instead took part in the play-offs to determine the third promoted team. Birmingham City finished 13 points behind West Bromwich Albion (who were promoted in second place) and 23 behind league winners Manchester City. Norwich City ended the season one point behind Birmingham City and level with Burnley but with superior goal difference. Norwich City's opponents for their play-off semi-final was Wolverhampton Wanderers who had ended the regular season in third place in the league.