Luton head to Sunderland in their Championship play-off semi-final first leg this weekend, following a season in which they finished third in the Championship, some 11 points above the Black Cats in sixth.
Since the second tier was rebranded back in 2004-05, there have been 18 play-off campaigns, and the Luton News takes a special look at whether being third has turned out to be a good or bad omen for those sides in their quest for the Premier League.
1. 2021-22: Huddersfield Town - beaten in final
The Terriers defeated an injury ravaged Luton 2-1 on aggregate in their semi-final contest, but then were beaten 1-0 by Nottingham Forest, for whom Ethan Horvath came on as a late substitute, at Wembley, thanks to a Levi Colwill own goal. Photo: Mike Hewitt
2. 2020-21: Brentford - promoted
After beating Bournemouth 3-2 in the semi-finals the Bees then eased past Swansea City 2-0 in the final thanks to goals from Ivan Toney and Emiliano Marcondes as the Swans had Jay Fulton sent off in the second half. Photo: Catherine Ivill
3. 2019-20: Brentford - beaten in final
After getting the better of Swansea City with a 3-2 aggregate semi-final success, the Bees got to Wembley only to lose 2-1 to the Cottagers behind closed doors with all the goals coming in extra time. Photo: Shaun Botterill
4. 2018-19: Leeds United - beaten in semi-final
After coming third, the Whites then lost out to Frank Lampard's Derby County side 4-3 on aggregate, as despite winning 1-0 at Pride Park in the first leg, they then lost out 4-2 at Elland Road, ex-Hatter Jack Marriot scoring twice for the Rams. Photo: Alex Livesey