Shepshed Dynamo’s season finale saw Lichfield City visit the Dovecote, with the hosts still in with a chance of grabbing the final play-off position. Shepshed would need Coleshill Town to fall to defeat at AFC Rushden & Diamonds and Racing Club Warwick not to win at home to St Neots Town, with nothing less than a victory for Dynamo required to place them inside the division’s top five.

Following a dramatic 3–2 away victory at Wellingborough Town last Saturday, Gary Drake opted for an unchanged eleven to start the afternoon’s game. Step 4 Manager of the Month for March, Ivor Green, made four changes to his Lichfield starting line-up, which had defeated AFC Rushden & Diamonds 2–1 in their previous home fixture.

Bright sunshine at the Dovecote set the scene for a dramatic afternoon, as Dynamo hoped for a fast start in similar fashion to the reverse fixture at Lichfield, in which Shepshed scored in the second minute. Things didn’t quite pan out that way, as within the first minute a Lichfield corner from the right was headed back across goal by Leighton McMenemy.

Dynamo goalkeeper Dan Wallis got a hand to McMenemy’s header but could only palm it into the path of Jamie Spiers. The Lichfield attacker finished into the empty net from inside the six-yard box to get the visitors off to the perfect start.

To their credit, Shepshed didn’t allow their heads to drop and quickly went in search of an equaliser. A 10th-minute cross from the right, courtesy of Jack Rogers, found striker Jesse Friend in the centre of goal. Friend’s header from 10 yards out drifted across goal but agonisingly wide of goalkeeper Brendan Bunn’s far post.

Despite some good Shepshed deliveries into the penalty area putting pressure on the away defence, Lichfield reminded the home side of their threat with 12 minutes on the clock. Harvey Smith found himself inside the Dynamo 18-yard box with his back to goal. Smith quickly turned and fired in a low, 15-yard effort that was safely gathered by Dan Wallis.

Dynamo’s bombardment of the Lichfield 18-yard box soon produced a penalty, as Chad Timson was brought down attempting to latch onto Declan Peart’s knockdown. Jude Collins stepped up to fire the 15th-minute penalty firmly into the left side of Bunn’s net to bring Shepshed level and grab his 15th goal of the season.

In the lead-up to the break, confusion engulfed the Dovecote as the referee’s whistle was mistakenly identified as the signal for half-time. In fact, a drinks break after 43 minutes had been called by the referee, with the crowd heading to the bars and refreshment stands in their droves, seemingly unaware that the half had not yet ended.

As the game restarted, Lichfield went on the offensive and Harvey Smith broke free down the left flank, bearing down on Wallis inside the 18-yard box. The angle was against Smith, and his shot towards the near post clipped the side netting. With 47 minutes played, the real half-time whistle followed shortly after.

Aiming to inflict a similar fate on Lichfield inside the first minute of the second half, Shepshed came close to taking the lead within 60 seconds of the restart. Declan Peart’s long throw from the right touchline was flicked on at the near post by Jesse Friend. The resulting ball found Jude Collins unmarked at the far post, and his low, 10-yard drive required a good save from Bunn, who held on.

Jack Rogers then had a sight of goal with 50 minutes played. Rogers beat the offside trap to face Bunn, but his progress was halted by a retreating Lichfield defender. He took his man left and right before aiming a powerful shot towards the near post, but his effort cleared the crossbar.

Lichfield had spent most of the second half camped in their own half, fending off Shepshed’s advances, before the ball fell to Jesse Friend outside the 18-yard box on the right. Friend turned his man and unleashed a low strike across Bunn into the far corner. The Dovecote erupted as, for the first time in the afternoon, Shepshed took the lead.

More good news followed as it emerged that Coleshill Town were 1–0 down at Rushden & Diamonds, with Racing Club Warwick being held 0–0 by St Neots. Dynamo moved into the top five, and it was about to get even better.

Declan Peart’s long throw from the left flank caused chaos inside the Lichfield penalty area. The ball fell to Jesse Friend 10 yards out, and just as he had against Wellingborough the previous week, Friend lashed the ball into the top corner. With 74 minutes played, it looked like it was going to be Dynamo’s day.

As the clock ticked down towards full-time, news came through that Racing Club Warwick had scored a first and then a second against already relegated St Neots. To add to that, Coleshill Town had produced a stunning fightback to level their game at 2–2. It wasn’t the news that Dynamo fans wanted to hear.

Still, that did little to dampen the spirits within the ground as the referee’s whistle confirmed a winning end to an incredible season for Shepshed Dynamo. A 3–1 win against a formidable opponent sees Gary Drake’s men finish in 7th place, only two points off the play-offs — quite an astonishing achievement following last season’s 13th-place finish.

A season that has seen Shepshed Dynamo come within a whisker of the FA Cup First Round, a record points total of 63 and the chance of promotion to Step 3 has been a joy to be part of for everyone at the club. The players, staff and supporters can be incredibly proud of a memorable campaign.

Dynamo: Wallis, Bayliss, Dixon (Korpal 60’), Peart, Partridge, Friend (Reason 94’), Burkey, Rogers (Allen 95’), Prenderville (Harrison 93’), Timson, Collins (Samples 85’)

Lichfield City: Bunn, Mansell, Francis, Eden, Mcmenemy, Mills (Lomas 66’), Edwards, Brown (Shorrock 66’), Smith (Smart 75’), Taylor (Sheasby 75’), Spiers (Childs 61’)

Attendance: 502