Wembley team selection could be decided on the day as Mansfield Town boss Nigel Clough looks to strike the right balance

Manager Clough made three big changes to get past Northampton Town in the semi-final second leg and book Saturday's game at Wembley, and on deciding on the Wembley starting XI he said: “It could be Friday or Saturday, probably Saturday.

“Sometimes we don't make up our mind and it might be one of those when we are still discussing options and the way we are going to go still on Saturday morning.

“All we have are a few knocks and niggles we have had over the last couple of weeks.

“Stephen Quinn has been carrying an injury, Rhys Oates does well to get through games at times, as does Lucas Akins.

“So we are hoping to have everyone available.”

He added: “The first problem is getting the balance of the team right.

“We made a few changes for the second leg at Northampton and we have a few people fighting for starting places to come back in. So it will be a difficult team to pick and get the balance right.

“I think we got it about right at Northampton for what we needed to do on the night. But this is a completely different game now 10 days later at Wembley.

“It's a big pitch, so we have to get the formation and the personnel right.

“Whatever the starting XI is, the subs will come on at Wembley – it's such an energy-sapping arena that we will need as close as we can everybody, as everybody has contributed all season in small parts and larger parts.”

Clough said it had been down to the character of his players they have got this far.

“I was asked at the start of the season what it would take to get through the season and be successful and I said the strength of the squad,” he recalled.

“He reminded me that my dad said many years ago it was about character, though they didn't have such big squads in those days.

“But it's the same thing in lots of ways. If you get the right characters in the squad then they can come in and contribute even when they haven't been involved for a little while.

“This squad has been very united and that is what got us through that bad spell earlier in the season and got us to this point now.

“Our togetherness kept us going through the dark days.

“If we go 1-0 down on Saturday you do not crumble, you don't fold. You try to come back and your spirit makes that more of a possibility.”

The Stags certainly won't be changing their attacking philosophy.

“I am immensely proud of the whole club and how we have handled it and moved forward, but mostly the players and the way they have performed,” said Clough.

“We have tried to play football and scored a few goals at home.

“We have tried to attack away from home. We set out to do that at the start of the season and we think that's our best way of succeeding.”