WHEN the final whistle sounded, it was all too much for the oldest man on the pitch.

With the roaring celebrations of over 40,000 of his fans, his people, ringing out across Wembley, Dean Windass sank to his knees in front of them and wept.

Hull City, who were languishing in the basement division at the beginning of the decade, are in the Premier League.

And it was Windass who put them there with a thunderous first-half volley.

How fitting that it should be a man who watched them as a child from the terraces of their old stadium, who delivered their proudest moment.

In an era when a footballer's dedication is constantly questioned, Windass is a joy to watch.

He lives and breathes this football club.

SATISFACTION & PRIDE

For his manager, Phil Brown, there was quiet satisfaction and pride.

Brown was in the Premier League as assistant to Sam Allardyce at Bolton, but his first attempt at solo management ended in disaster when he was sacked after just seven months at Derby County.

Now his new side will replace them in the top flight. Revenge is rarely so sweet.

Hull were in the relegation zone of the Championship when he arrived, but with shrewd purchases and excellent man-management, he has presided over an incredible change of fortunes.

Windass was the goalscoring hero and the Man of the Match, but he couldn't have done it without the impressive Fraizer Campbell, on loan from Manchester United.

Campbell latched on to a 38th-minute Nicky Barmby through-ball and jinked into the penalty area, dancing through the Bristol City defence.

Forced wide by his victims, most young strikers would have tried in vain to crash the ball home from a tight angle, but not this boy.

Campbell looked up, noticed a heavy-set, bleached blond hardman on the edge of the box and lofted the ball to him with remarkable precision.

Windass did the rest.

When Sir Alex Ferguson watches the highlights, he may consider giving Campbell a chance at Old Trafford.

FRUSTRATING

This was a terrible day at the office for Bristol City who lost their defender Jamie McCombe to overnight illness, their right-back Bradley Orr to a sickening head injury and just couldn't find their groove on a long frustrating afternoon.

Lee Trundle, their most gifted player, was woefully off the pace, tripping over the ball and losing possession.

When the ball fell to him on he edge of the six-yard box, it was almost inevitable that his shot would be deflected over.

That deflection, caused by the excellent Michael Turner, was as important as a goal for Hull City, coming as it did in the middle of an extended spell of pressure from the Robins.

It crushed Bristol City's confidence. If they couldn't score from there, they couldn't score from anywhere.

Questions will be asked of this Hull City side soon.

Are they just fresh meat for the Premier League grinder?

Can they do better than last year's play-off winners Derby County?

How many of this team will still be here in August?

But these are questions for another day.

For now, London reverberates to the sound of their celebrations and somewhere, even as you read this report, that old warrior Windass is probably still out there with them.

BRISTOL CITY: Basso, Orr (Johnson 45), Carey, Fontaine, McAllister, Noble (Sproule 63), Elliott, Carle (Byfield 76), McIndoe, Adebola, Trundle

HULL CITY: Myhill, Ricketts, Brown, Turner, Dawson, Garcia, Ashbee, Hughes, Barmby (Fagan 67), Campbell (Marney 90), Windass (Folan 71)