As City showed their greater stamina, Dickov went close to getting City's third in extra time, but sent a header too close to Bartram.Despite Manchester City's greater Wembley pedigree, it was the Kent side who had appeared more at ease with the occasion early on and they went close through Mick Galloway, who saw Weaver dive to keep out his close- range effort.City had beaten Gillingham in the last League meeting between these two sides but it took 26 minutes for them to stretch the Gills' defence, let alone hint at the victory to come. Terry Cooke, a former United player, had a subdued first half but he got to the byline and whipped in a cross that found Horlock unmarked in the six-yard box but his header was saved by Bartram, who gathered at the second attempt.While they were giving nothing away at the back, Gillingham continued to threaten and with 20 minutes of the second half gone, Nicky Southall sent in a cross that the substitute Mark Saunders could only flick wide and soon after Asaba was only denied a shot from close range by Ian Bishop's saving tackle. Gillingham went even closer after 70 minutes, as Paul Smith sent in a fierce low shot that Weaver did well to hold.Yet City reacted and with 15 minutes left, another Cooke cross this time found Goater, whose shot beat Bartram but hit the post, leaving City fans to fear this was not to be their day. As it turned out, it was far too soon for a team from Manchester to score a goal.Once they had levelled and penalties were an option, extra-time barely saw a chance and buoyed by their remarkable comeback, City finished off the job they had started so late in the day. It may only be a brief moment, but right now Manchester is a city united in football.City's proud manager, Royle, said: "My team never gives up, never. Manchester United did the same in Barcelona and now we have shown that there's another team in Manchester that just won't give in Just like United, we were not at our best.

But bringing on Ian Bishop and Gareth Taylor changed it for us."I feel sorry for Tony Pulis and his team. They're a terrific side, strong and hard to play against and they'll back in the hunt next season But I still think the play-offs are a joke. You play 46 games then a cup competition."Gillingham's Tony Pulis praised his shattered team and criticised the referee, Mark Halsey, over the five minutes of injury time at the end of the 90 minutes. "We're gutted," groaned Pulis, "and I can't imagine where the referee got five minutes of injury time from at the end of 90 minutes."Gillingham (5-3-2): Bartram; Patterson (Hodge, 105), Ashby, Pennock, Butters, Southall; Smith, Hessenthaler, Galloway (Saunders, 57); R Taylor, Asaba (Carr, 87).

Manchester City (4-4-2): Weaver; Crooks (G Taylor, 86), Edghill, Morrison (Bishop, 63), Wiekens; Brown (Vaughan, 63), Whitley, Horlock, Cooke, Dickov, Goater.Referee: M Halsey (Welwyn Garden City) Bookings: Gillingham: Pennock, R Taylor, Carr. Manchester City: G Taylor, Wiekens.Man of the Match: DickovAttendance: 76,935.. BETWEEN THE time it took the Scunthorpe manager, Brian Laws, to finish congratulating his players on winning Saturday's Third Division play-off final at Wembley and reaching the interview room reality had dawned. "I know what my biggest problem is for next season and it's not how to stay in the Second Division, but how to keep the best of the young players who got us there." He was thinking particularly of the youngest of them in a play-off that for the first half was as one sided in Scunthorpe's favour as the previous Saturday's FA Cup final had been in the grip of Manchester United.