Now that the last fixtures have been played and the promotion and relegation issues settled, the only decision to be made is whether Liverpool will be allowed to defend the Champions League trophy.

Like all English supporters, I would like to see that happening, but being devil's advocate, our clubs appear to be wanting it all.

Not that long ago, only the champions of each league were allowed in.

Now we have the top four and, in hindsight, the rules should have been made at the beginning of last season that the fourth team automatically qualifies unless another team outside of the top four wins the trophy, in which case the fourth team would enter the UEFA Cup.

Everton have earned the right according to the rules, so Liverpool are very much in the hands of the law makers who, whilst no doubt enjoying great hospitality at the final itself, when they go home to their own associations are far removed from the passion and euphoria that saw a million people flood the streets of Liverpool to welcome home the mighty Reds.

I fear they may say rules are not to be broken.

As far as the league's ups and downs are concerned, I had very mixed feelings as two of my old clubs Sunderland and Sheffield Wednesday gained promotion.

I didn't have an easy relationship with Sunderland chairman Bob Murray, but he has to be congratulated, along with manager Mick McCarthy, on ruthlessly cutting down the massive wage bill and running costs they had while in the Premiership two years ago, and proving that all players do not have to have international careers or be brought in from the big clubs to get you back in there.

Full marks to Mick, below, who had a lot to prove after the sad way his time with the Republic of Ireland ended following his far too public fall out with Roy Keane.

Both he and Bob Murray will realise, as I did having managed in every division, that the one you go into above is much harder than the one you've left below.

While you would like to reward all of the players with a long spell in the higher flight, the reality is that you have to bring in better quality which, of course, puts up the wage bill again.

I'm sure lessons have been learned from their last experience and, of course, Sunderland have the benefit of massive support which gave them gates of 25,000-30,000 in the Championship, which could rise to 48,000 in the top flight.

Sheffield Wednesday were always named in the same breath as the big clubs back in the days of general manager Eric Taylor, manager Alan Brown and the chairman Dr Stephens, who was also chairman of the FA.

They were the first club to sign a £100,000 teenager, Tommy Craig from Aberdeen, and their imposing Hillsborough stadium was used regularly for FA Cup semi-finals and international games.

Sadly, also, it was the scene of one of the game's biggest crowd disasters.

But, thanks to Paul Sturrock, who arrived at the beginning of the season when they were languishing near the bottom of League One, they have now started their climb back to the big time after earning promotion through the play-off system.

Paul is no stranger to Saints supporters, even though he had only 13 games in charge - 11 of which were towards the end of last season.

That's never a good time to arrive at a club, yet he still won a third of his games and, amazingly, after losing one and winning one of his first two this season, suddenly left.

Rumours in the game abounded as to why.

Player power was the most popular of these because, apparently, some didn't like his training methods and his laid-back approach to the business.

So this manager who has coached three promotion teams in the last four seasons, and therefore has probably the best league record of any manager in England at present, was not sartorially correct and had attended too many coaching courses instead of finishing school.

Thank goodness, then, that Southampton didn't have dear old Brian Clough in his heyday.

On the odd occasion Brian did turn up at the training ground, he would usually be dressed in odd-matching clothes with green wellingtons and a flat cap.

With a walking stick and his dog, he would stand for a few minutes and observe what the players were doing and then occasionally wander a few yards on to the field, pointing his stick at some international or other and at the top of his voice, frightening old ladies and children walking by, would shout: "Hey young man, I don't pay you to go into silly positions like that. Do as you're told or I'll set the bloody dog on you."

He only won the European Cup twice plus the League championship (with different clubs) and the League Cup (the latter on many occasions).

Just think what he could have achieved if he'd had better manners...

And, finally, the sad part of my trilogy. While two of my other former clubs, Doncaster and Grimsby, battled on manfully, Saints went marching down.

Hopefully, they can do a Sunderland, draw breath, re-group and get back to the position we all worked for so hard nearly 30 years ago.