Josh Murphy's Wembley brace has ensured Oxford United will join Norwich City in the Championship next season.
The 29-year-old scored a quick-fire brace to give the Us a 2-0 lead over Bolton Wanderers in the first half, first seeing his deflected strike beat Nathan Baxter from the corner of the box before latching onto Ruben Rodrigues' pass to round Baxter and tap in.
Bolton searched for a way back into the game in the second half but were unsuccessful, failing to register even a shot on target in West London.
Murphy's former team-mate Cameron Jerome was introduced for the Trotters in the 66th minute, but couldn't prevent the end of his four-game unbeaten streak at the national stadium.
"ECSTASY FOR OXFORD!" 🎙
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) May 18, 2024
Josh Murphy's deflected strike puts Oxford United ahead in the League One play-off final! 💥 pic.twitter.com/Wf7mFkwNJG
The win means Murphy could be reunited with his old club next season, although his future is unclear with his contract up this summer.
The former Cardiff man, who left Norwich in 2018 to join the Bluebirds, is still weighing up his options ahead of next season, although promotion makes staying at the Kassam an attractive option.
Murphy was elated post-match, praising his team-mates and revealing that he had the help of his twin brother Jacob, who also came through the Norwich academy more than a decade ago.
OXFORD AGAIN, MURPHY AGAIN! 🌟
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) May 18, 2024
Josh Murphy doubles Oxford United's lead at Wembley 🔥 pic.twitter.com/NumPSuveYb
"This group is very special," he told Sky Sports. "We knew this game was either sink or swim, and everyone swam today.
"We've got such good togetherness here, and everyone's just buzzing. Our backs were against the wall (in the semi-final) against Peterborough and we did it.
"Then today we played out of our skin, so I'm buzzing. I want to play in these big moments. My brother keeps telling me it's my time to shine, and I think I've done that."
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