Greg Halford’s 59th-minute goal sent Sheffield United into the Championship play-off final as The Blades beat Preston 1-0 at Bramall Lane.
With the sides having drawn 1-1 in the first leg at Deepdale, Halford’s header on the hour separated them in the return encounter and booked Kevin Blackwell’s side a Wembley showdown with either Reading or Burnley, who play again on Tuesday.
United and Preston served up a lively first half but both were unable to break the deadlock, and it took a Kyle Walker cross to provide Halford – on a season-long loan from Sunderland – with an opportunity to open the scoring.
The midfielder did so with a towering header that beat Preston keeper Andy Lonergan into the top-left corner to send the home crowd into raptures.
It was a deserved result for the Yorkshire hosts, who will await the result of the encounter at Reading’s Madejski Stadium, where Burnley take a 1-0 advantage from the first leg to.