Sheffield United had to settle for a place in the Championship play-offs after being held 0-0 by Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

The Blades arrived in south-east London still harbouring hopes of automatic promotion, but only a victory would have given them a chance of joining champions Wolves in the Barclays Premier League next season.

Even then, the Yorkshire club had to hope that Reading would take something from their home game against Birmingham.

Conspiracy theorists had been hard at work in the build-up to the game, playing on the fact that Crystal Palace manager Neil Warnock is the former Blades boss, a self-confessed life-long Sheffield United fan and long-time friend of current Blades manager Kevin Blackwell.

But in the end it was all immaterial as Birmingham won 2-1 at the Madejski Stadium to seal an immediate return to the top flight.

The game itself saw Sheffield United create the better chances in the first half with the roles reverse after the break - except for a superb point-blank block from Julian Speroni to deny Jamie Ward just after the hour mark and Sheffield United will now face Preston in the play-off semi-finals.