Carlisle City did it! A remarkable run to catch up on their games in hand ended with them snatching the Northern League Division Two title on the final day.
Their 3-0 home win over Ryton and Crowcrack Albion clinched the crown as long-time leaders Heaton Stannington were held 2-2 at Easington Colliery.
Indeed Stannington needed a last minute penalty to earn the draw and will now face Easington on Wednesday in the play-off semi-final.
So were the City players aware of what was happening at Easington during their game?
Manager Jim Nichols says: “It was something we tried to block out in the build-up and during it to try and concentrate on our own game.
“That wasn’t easy with people round the ground keeping up to date but I suppose in the main it was kept quiet until around 75 minutes.
“We were in charge by then and word got round Stannington were losing. We did our bit and won and then soon after the final whistle we heard the other result and the celebrations began.”
It will be a return to the First Division for Nichols having done four years at Penrith – three as assistant to Matt Henney and a fourth as ‘caretaker’ which lasted a season when Mark Birch was originally ear-marked for the job.
“We have a good squad with plenty of young players who will have benefitted from this season.
“It might need a couple of new faces but we’ll see who might be available locally next season.
“In the meantime we can enjoy what this squad has achieved this season. It’s been nothing short of incredible.”
In January City were 17 points behind leaders Heaton Stannington who had been top since early January.
In the last 25 days they have won nine League games in a row to pip their rivals to the title.
On Saturday, Ryton had started very well. They were hoping to clinch a play-off place with a win and for 20 minutes gave City plenty to think about.
Indeed it was the 18th minute before City made a meaningful attack but in the next minute, City took the lead as Holt found Palmer who broke clear and shot crisply past Ball for his 33rd goal of the season.
With Heaton’s game goalless at Easington Colliery, City were in top spot at half-time.
It was 68 minutes before City had the comfort of a second goal when Irving beat Ball with a fine header for his 23rd of the season.
Matters were now becoming very exciting as Easington added a second against Heaton, and City made it 3-0 when substitute Bradbury ran well into the box before slotting his shot past Ball.
Inevitably, attention began to drift from watching this game to monitoring Heaton’s progress on social media and they made it 2-1 in the 70th minute of their game.
When the final whistle went at Gillford Park the City players then gathered in an anxious huddle in the centre circle.
At that point, Heaton were awarded a penalty to make their game 2-2 with seven added minutes to play.
The tension was almost unbearable as mobile feeds were constantly refreshed with vain hopes of further updates. Suddenly, there was a huge cheer and mass celebrations as the 2-2 score at Easington was confirmed and City were champions.
