Bartlomiej Chrobak is super sub as Wakefield AFC take chance to move up to second

It was a big day at the business-end of the league, with fourth placed Wakefield having the chance to leapfrog both second placed Dodworth and third-placed Penistone Church Reserves, who themselves had a big clash with table-toppers Swinton Athletic, writes Austin Ainsworth.

And that is what happened with Wakefield doing their bit with a 3-2 success while Swinton's 1-0 win against Penistone meant that they are now eight points clear at the top, but in hot pursuit are Gabe Mozzini's men who have a game in hand and still have Athletic to play.

Thanks to curtailed seasons and cancelled fixtures, 948 days had passed since the last, and only, fixture between Wakefield and Dodworth. That was only Wakefield’s second competitive match as a fledgling football club, in which they recovered from a three goal deficit in the first half-hour to steal a late draw in a barnstorming match.

Although these are now two very different sides - Wakefield in particular bearing no resemblance to the players and coaches of that early side - Saturday’s match was a similarly enthralling affair with barely a moment to catch a breath.

Aside from Henry Kendrick coming back into goal for Wakefield, there were no changes to the side that dispatched Sheffield Town 4-0 in their last outing.

It was Kendrick who was the busier goalkeeper in the early stages as he expertly denied Dodworth the early lead in the third minute; first low to his left when the striker had run in on goal and then incredibly at point-blank range on the rebound.

That early action was indicative of the frantic pace of the game, with the home side probably just shading an end-to-end first 15 minutes. Dodworth found success in loading all of their players on to Wakefield’s backline in the hopes of getting knock-ons from the long ball and it kept the centre-back pairing of Bradley Swain and Cory Woodward gainfully employed as they and the rest of their teammates, rose to the physical challenge offered by Dodworth.

Wakefield were brave on the ball and pressed high off it and started to find their own opportunities as the half wore on. Top scorer Jake Morrison had a good chance to bag his 19th goal of the season when he ran in from the left in the 17th minute, but he could only hit the side netting as the angle closed.

That marked a period of sustained pressure from Wakefield, who were relentless in winning the ball back high, and their first goal duly followed.

Fresh off the back of a hat-trick last week, Billy Mole was the scorer after Owen Kirman smartly picked him out on the penalty spot with a good cut-back from the left. The number 10 was denied by a block with his first shot, but was alive to the rebound and managed to swing his body round to smash a half-volley low to the goalkeeper’s right with his left foot.

Wakefield did not let-up with a penned-in Dodworth making a number of other goal-saving blocks; the best a goal-line clearance from a corner-kick flicked-on by Morrison.

The battle-hardened home side stayed in the game, though, and found their route back in shortly before half-time. The goal was a sublime free-kick from Daniel Barlow on the left edge of the area, which curled over the wall and just under the crossbar.

Wakefield had been frustrated with the initial awarding of the foul against captain Luke Blackburn, who appeared to have won the ball but was deemed to be over the limit by the referee; a decision that would be a non-argument in the Premier League but slightly more contentious in the 11th tier that these two sides occupy.

Wakefield Athletic clinch promotion to Wakefield Sunday League's top division

Initially the second half was a noticeably tamer affair, understandable given the energy levels of the first. The match was also slowed by stoppages, including a change in the Wakefield goal as Max Child replaced the injured Kendrick.

Wakefield did eventually re-take the lead in the 69th minute, with none other than Mole on hand to complete a free-flowing Wakefield move. Kirman was again his provider, initially playing a quick one-two with him to beat the Dodworth press. He then found his wings and flew down the left, eventually crossing perfectly for Mole who had raced to meet the ball at the back post to become the side's joint top scorer on 18 goals.

Dodworth’s own number 10 Barlow was not finished as he produced another expertly taken free-kick following another contentiously awarded free-kick in the 75th minute.

There was still time for even later drama, though, as Wakefield capped-off a brilliant game with a winner from super-sub Bartlomiej Chrobak almost at the death.

Manager Mozzini was vindicated for a somewhat brave decision to replace the outstanding Kirman on the left. The ball initially fell to midfielder Danny Youel, who drilled an excellent pass through to Morrison who appeared to just evade the offside trap. He unselfishly laid the ball off to Chrobak and although he was first denied by an excellent save from the Dodworth keeper, he did not give up and was able to bundle the ball into the net as the home defence scrambled to try and clear.

The celebrations from the strong Wakefield away-fan contingent were wild, but emotions soon turned to nervousness as Wakefield had one last hurdle of stoppage time to navigate, during which even the Dodworth goalkeeper was in the Wakefield box trying to capitalise on another set-piece. Wakefield were ultimately untroubled and expertly saw out a deserved victory in what was arguably their best game of the season.

All eyes will now be on the re-match this Saturday against a wounded Dodworth with the game kicking off at 3pm at The Millennium Stadium, Featherstone.