Penistone Church manager Ian Richards believes his side will win promotion and the League Cup if they replicate their stunning performance in the 3-1 win at AFC Emley in the Division One play-off semi-final on Wednesday.
Church finished three places below Emley in the league but dominated the match and missed a host of outstanding chances. They will now visit Grimsby Borough – who came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Hallam – in the play-off final tomorrow and are also in the League Cup final against top flight Bridlington Town at Sheffield United's Bramall Lane on May 17.
Richards said: "I am absolutely delighted and so proud of every single player. It was an exceptional performance throughout the 90 minutes and the number of clear cut chances we created was into double figures. We didn't expect it to be so one-sided. It could easily have been ten, and that is no exaggeration.
"They could not handle our strikers but that all came from our solid foundation in midfield and defence. It's already the best season in the club's 110-year history and my best as a manager. What a way to finish the season with a play-off final and a cup final at Bramall Lane. If we can win both of them, I don't know if it could get better.
"Grimsby is a long trek but, on a Saturday, we will have more time to get there than for a midweek game. Whoever we play we are confident of winning if we play like we did at Emley. If we do that, then we will give anyone a game including Bridlington at Bramall Lane. This club means a lot to me, it is my hometown club and I am doing it with my brother Duncan as the assistant manager and players who have been with me since day one like our captain Danny Howes."
Penistone slipped down from fifth to sixth in the final table after they finished their league campaign with a 6-1 thrashing at mid-table Glasshoughton Welfare, who got revenge for their League Cup semi-final defeat at Church four days earlier. Conor Glavin – son of Barnsley FC legend Ronnie Glavin – got the first and last goal for the hosts while Jack Moore's penalty for Church made it 4-1 before they conceded two more. Richards apologised to fans for the performance, saying he accepted 'full responsibility.'
His side were top of the league for most of the first half of the season as they were unbeaten in their first 17 games, winning 13, but they lost eight and won 11 of their last 25. They finished one place lower than last season, but with seven more points.
It was also a bad weekend for Emley, who did not play but went from leading the league to finishing outside the automatic promotion positions in third because Hall Road Rangers and Pontefract Collieries each won to go up.
In Wednesday's semi-final, Church returned to the ground where they lost at the same stage last season. In front of 806 people, they got the perfect start when veteran striker Andy Ring, who also coaches the team, curled in a fine ten-yard finish from the left side of the box in the third minute.
Emley missed a one-on-one but Church squandered an even better chance when Ring went clean through after a great team move and squared to Scott Whittington who miskicked in front of the open goal from five yards out. But the second goal eventually came from an Emley defender who headed a left-wing cross into his own net.
Whittington missed another golden chance just before the break when he was totally unmarked from James Young's free-kick but could only knee it straight at the goalkeeper. Just after the interval, Ring almost got his second but couldn't find the finish after bursting clear on the left then was denied by a good save after yet again going through one-on-one.
But the third goal eventually came when a poor defensive pass led to the home goalkeeper bringing down Whittington and Moore scoring his second penalty of the week. The goalkeeper was booked for that then received a second yellow card for taking out Whittington again outside the box. Emley pulled one back on 77 minutes but they never threatened a comeback.
Penistone substitute Danny Joynes missed another one-on-one after winning the ball on the edge of the home box then fellow replacement Luke Johnson hit the post from a tight angle. Joynes fired over an empty net after the stand-in goalkeeper miskicked then Johnson sent a one-on-one chance wide.
Meanwhile, Athersley Rec suffered their first away defeat since November as they went down 2-1 at second-placed Pickering Town in the Premier Division. The hosts took the lead in the fourth minute but Kieran Scargill levelled just before the break, only for Pickering to net a winner midway through the second half. Rec had won four and drawn three of their seven away games across the previous five months.
Athersley now complete their season at home to 14th-placed Bottesford Town tomorrow. They are currently level with their best ever finishing position in their club's history, which is tenth, but a victory in the final game could see them finish as high as eighth.
