Striker Jack Marriott believes Derby County will be fully prepared heading into the Sky Bet Championship Play-Off Final against Aston Villa on Monday.
Since the 4-3 aggregate victory against Leeds United at the Semi-Final stage last Wednesday, the Rams will have had a 12-day gap to the clash against Dean Smith’s side at Wembley Stadium.
To fill the void, the Rams took in some warm-weather training earlier this week ahead of the game and have worked hard to prepare for Monday’s showdown.
“It was tough with the heat out there, but we trained hard as we always do,” he told RamsTV. “It is hard work, so you sleep well, but it has to be done.
“When there is a bit more of a bigger gap between the game at Elland Road and Wembley, you have to be able to put the work in and you have got to make sure you maintain a level so that if called upon at Wembley you are ready.”
Marriott is accustomed to stepping up at the big moments.
His brace against Leeds United helped to secure a place at Wembley, and earlier in the season, his debut goal for the club came at Old Trafford in the famous victory in the Carabao Cup Third Round against Manchester United..
“That was a great place to score my first goal and be able to kick on from there,” he said. “It seems a long time ago now, it has been a long, hard season for us all. We are going into the last game of our season and let’s get the right result.
“It is another football match. I don’t want to over think it and we have got to go there and do the business.
“We have got to perform well like we have done for the majority of the season and we can beat anyone on our day.
“It has been a long, tough season but to make the step up from League One, to prove a lot of people wrong that may have doubted me before is nice.
“That is a pleasing aspect, but it is hard to fully reflect when you don’t know exactly how the season is going to finish. It is a massive game so let’s go and get the win.”
Villa are the opponents at Wembley Stadium, a team who the Rams have tasted defeat against twice this season.
However, Marriott believes anything can happen on the day.
“They are a good team with great players, and they lost in the final last year,” he commented. “The second half of the season they have been particularly strong, they went on a good run but no one is unbeatable.
“They will be ready, but likewise we have a good squad and likewise we will be ready. I think it will be a great game, a great occasion and hopefully we can come out on top.”
