Darren Craven’s snatched as a dramatic late winner as Longford Town saw off Bray Wanderers on Easter Monday.
Craven poked the ball home three minutes in injury time putting Longford’s promotion push into fourth gear in the Carlisle grounds.
The hosts had the better of the first-half exchanges. In the seventh minute, Bray created a good opportunity, Darragh Levingston heading Callum Thompson cross just wide.
The Seagulls next chance came 22 minutes. Paul Fox’s right wing cross was struck on the half-volley from just outside the box by Levingston. However, his shot deflected off Town midfielder Ryan Graydon and was gathered by keeper Luke Dennison.
Two minutes later, Darragh Lynch fired a low 25-yard shot just wide of the Longford post.
Longford Town’s only real chance was on 36 minutes, when a superb ball from just inside the Bray half from Michael Barker was latched onto by Sam Verdon. Verdon knocked the ball past the advancing Wanderers Keeper Stephen McGuinness, but his effort from a very tight angle near the end-line went across the goal.
Four minutes into the second-half, the hosts should have hit the front when Levingston somehow side-footed a Thompson cross over the Longford bar.
Totally against the run of play, Town took the lead in the 54th minute. Dylan Barnett whipped in a curling free-kick and Barker timed his run to perfection to head home.
The visitors nearly doubled their lead five minutes later. A Barnett free-kick was spilled by McGuinness and Graydon seemed set to pounce to poke the ball into the empty net. Only for a Bray defender to intervene with a last-gasp tackle.
The hosts responded with an effort on 62 minutes, but Town stopper Dennison saved a 25-yard Keith Dalton strike.
The Seagulls missed a great chance to equalise on nine minutes later. A Marty-Waters left wing cross was somehow turned wide from close range by substitute striker Rob Manley.
Longford should have gone two up on 76 minutes but missed the proverbial sitter. A Craven cross found Verdon inside the box and although his shot was brilliantly saved by McGuinness, the ball landed at the feet of Eric Molloy who somehow fired wide of a gaping goal.
The visitors were to rue that missed sitter just three minutes later as the Seagulls equalised when Manley headed home a Kurtis Byrne corner.
In stoppage time, Dennison tipped over a rasping long-range effort from Bray’s Conor Knight.
Longford grabbed victory in the third minute of stoppage time. Joe Power’s superb defence splitting pass put in Craven, who coolly slipped the ball past McGuinness for the winning goal.
Just before the final whistle, the host side were reduced to ten players as Paul Fox received his marching orders.
Bray Wanderers: McGuinness, Blackbyrne, Hudson, Knight, Fox, Dalton (Byrne 64), Levingston (Manahan 64), Zambra, Thompson, Lynch (Manley 64), Marty-Waters (Knight 77).
Longford Town: Dennison, Elworthy, Barker, Barnett, Lynch, Molloy (Power 89), Robinson (Chambers 17), Craven, Graydon (O’Brien 65), McMenamy, Verdon.
