Jonny Howson admitted he had expected to be dropped for the second leg of Leeds' thrilling League One play-off semi-final win over Carlisle.Leeds had been comprehensively outplayed in Monday night's first leg at Elland Road and 19-year-old Howson was one of several of Gary McAllister's players who had not performed in front of an expectant sell-out crowd.

But the Yorkshiremen turned round their 2-1 first-leg deficit in impressive fashion at Brunton Park, with local boy Howson firing Leeds to Wembley on May 25 with virtually the last kick of the game.

The Morley-born midfielder, who had levelled the tie in the 10th minute of the return leg after latching onto Dougie Freedman's cross, was in dreamland after repaying his manager.

Howson said: "If Gary McAllister had put me on the bench, I'd have had no complaints.

"The other night I was way below my standard, but I can put it down to being one of those games.

"As soon as I found out I was starting, I thought 'I've got to repay him' because he kept faith with me.

"The thought that he would drop me had crossed my mind a few times because I'd been nowhere near the performance I was capable of, but he had a word with me, said I wasn't good enough on Monday and that I needed to up it.

"It hasn't sunk in yet but obviously I'm delighted. With the second goal, I didn't think I connected with it as well as I would have liked, and when it hit the net I didn't know how to react. It was just a massive buzz.

"It's been a hard season but we have to go to Wembley now. The job's not fully done."

Leeds now await the winners of Friday's other semi-final between Doncaster and Southend at the Keepmoat Stadium. The first leg at Roots Hall last Friday ended goalless.

Lifelong Leeds fan Howson said no scriptwriter could have written it better and added had he not made the grade as a player at Elland Road he would have been among the fans on the Brunton Park terraces.

He said: "If I wasn't in this position (as a player), I'd have either been at Carlisle tonight or at home watching the game on TV.

"To actually be playing, it's what you dream of as a little kid. I couldn't have written this any better for myself.

"It's going to take me a few days to come down because we're going to Wembley. It's a massive achievement."

Leeds will appear in their second play-off final in two years at Wembley on May 25 and will be hoping to avoid repeating the same experience.

Former manager Kevin Blackwell steered them to the Championship play-off final against Watford in 2006, but the players trudged off in defeat after a miserable display at the Millennium Stadium.

Leeds were relegated to League One for the first time in the club's history the following season but now stand only 90 minutes away from a swift return to the Championship.

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