Saturday 4th October 2025 | Austin Ainsworth
After Wakefield AFC returned to winning ways over a week ago against Goole, two more NCEL Division One games followed this past week; Wakefield on the road for both, with tough trips to Crowle Colts and Selby Town.
First up came Crowle on Tuesday night, a side unbeaten in nine games in all competitions and who sat one place above The Falcons in fourth prior to kick-off. Wakefield manager Jason Blunt made two changes to the side victorious against Goole; Lance Friedrich rewarded for his first goal for the club in that match with his first start, and Owen Thomas returning to the side at left wing-back as Blunt reverted to the back three seen when he first came in as manager.
With Ash Flynn the lone striker, there was a tweak to the formation previously used by Blunt, as Friedrich and Tom Hinton operated as two no. 10’s behind the striker in a system that will no doubt have set alarm bells ringing for any Manchester United fans in attendance. They need not have worried, as Wakefield demonstrated the formation made infamous by Ruben Amorim can work, in what was arguably their best performance of the season.
In a very competitive first half opportunities on goal were shared pretty equally by the two sides, though Wakefield had the more clear-cut chances, early-on through Igor Mlynarski and latterly when Flynn was denied one-against-one.
It was ultimately a moment of magic that broke the deadlock just before half-time, when Hinton stepped up to take a free-kick 25 yards from goal just to the right of centre. With his right foot, the midfield maestro curled a sublime effort up and over the wall, leaving the goalkeeper stranded as the ball dipped into the net off the underside of the crossbar.
The goal set Wakefield on their way to an utterly dominant second half performance, one in which they stroked the ball about the pitch with ease and completely stifled the home side into submission.
Wakefield’s aggressive high press bore fruit just after the hour mark when the home ‘keeper’s attempted pass out was intercepted by Flynn. The striker ran into the box and rounded the goalkeeper, only for the Crowle no. 1 to compound his initial error by fouling Flynn. The striker stepped up to take the penalty and clinically slotted the ball into the side netting to the right of the goalkeeper, keeping his effort hard and low to double Wakefield’s lead.
Flynn, Wakefield’s top-scorer with 11 goals, could have had more in the half but was denied by some good goalkeeping. The marksman ultimately had to settle for an assist, as he tee’d up Hinton for Wakefield’s third just two minutes after the penalty. Friedrich, excellent on the ball throughout the game with a number of eye-catching touches and passes, played a massive part in the goal with a glorious pass through to Flynn that scythed apart the Crowle defence. Flynn ran into the right of the box and selflessly squared for Hinton, who had an easy finish into an open net to seal the three points.
That outstanding performance took Wakefield bouncing into Saturday’s trip to 17th placed Selby, a side with just one win in their last five games and one who had never tasted victory over Wakefield before. That record counted for nothing though, in what turned out to be a very tough outing for Wakefield.
Blunt made one change to the side, Callum Nicell returning to replace Friedrich with the system staying the same as in midweek. In sharp contrast to the game against Crowle, Wakefield never really had control of the match and rode their luck at times.
And it was Selby who took the lead in just the 11th minute through Harry Clapham, who raced ahead of his marker at the back post to divert the ball beyond Drew Bremmer in the Wakefield goal, after Wakefield had initially failed to stop the cross from the left hand side.
Wakefield toiled in a game of few chances, but did find an equaliser midway through the half; one that was initially credited to Wakefield defender Bolton Makwedza but later claimed by the increasingly goal-hungry Hinton in the light of an in-house video review. Hinton initially pumped a free-kick into the box that was cleared back to him. The midfielder worked the ball to the left on his left foot and curled a teasing, out-swinging cross toward the far post. Makwedza came sliding in as the ball went into goal but – as mentioned – in actual fact the quality of the cross was such that it had curled all the way into the side netting without the need for any touch from Makwedza.
Wakefield were slightly improved in the second half as they shifted to a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Mlynarski moved upfield to the right attacking-midfield position, whilst captain Billy Mole moved to the left.
That was before Blunt made a triple substitution on 58 minutes that saw the withdrawal of Nicell, Mole and Makwedza for Friedrich, Eliel Anku and Oli Robinson. The change would no doubt have raised some eyebrows given the proven quality that had left the pitch, but it proved inspired as all three substitutes were involved in Wakefield taking the lead just two minutes after their arrival.
A quick counter saw Anku excellently hold the ball up and lay it off to Friedrich on the left. He deftly dinked the ball back infield to Flynn who quickly drilled the ball back to Anku to complete a neat passing triangle on the edge of the Selby box. Anku then freed Friedrich down the left with and audacious flick, who crossed to Robinson in the centre of the box. Robinson showed great awareness to touch and then pass the ball sideways to none other than Hinton, who bagged his brace with a good, low finish into goal.
The goal ultimately proved sufficient to secure the three points for Wakefield, though not without some jeopardy as Selby had good chances to equalise and – controversially – did see a goal ruled out by the linesman. Bremer had made an excellent save from long range as the game drew to a close, but could only parry the ball back into the danger area, where a Selby man raced to the ball to finish on the rebound. It was unclear whether the linesman had somehow confused the goalscorer with another Selby player that had been loitering in the box, but there was no doubt the scorer – who had ran from deep – was several yards onside and therefore equally no doubt that Wakefield had received a massive let off from the officials.
Nevertheless, with Wakefield’s defensive duo of Chris Salt and T’Nique Fishley having cleared everything else that was thrown at them in a late flurry of activity from the home side, The Falcons held on to make it three wins in a row with a victory that moved them to fourth in the league, just five points from the top.
There were plenty of other reasons for celebration too, as Wakefield’s maverick midfielder Mole reached 100 games for the club; a feat achieved in two spells with Wakefield in what is now his fifth season with the side. Mole remains Wakefield’s all time top-scorer with 52 goals in those 100 games and, with 20 assists added into the mix, his output from midfield has been truly remarkable. His role has changed in latter seasons, though not his contribution, as fans have become more used to seeing him covering every blade of glass in a deeper midfield position where he can control games.
It’s a role that frees up other players to take the limelight, and after another jaw-dropping week, Hinton is the one currently grabbing that mantle as he himself perhaps seeks to match the ridiculous numbers put up by Mole in his early seasons. With four goals this week, Hinton now boasts a record of 18 goal involvements in 15 games this season. The two players, part of an increasingly close-knit, cohesive and competitive squad, are no doubt crucial to Wakefield’s aspirations this season, as The Falcons now look to extend another winning run under Blunt.
Wakefield now have a little longer to prepare for their next fixture, another tough game on Friday evening as Wakefield travel to high-flying Worsbrough Bridge in a battle of third against fourth; kick-off 19:45PM on 10/10/2025.
Selby Town Match Stats
Half Time: 1-1
Full Time: 1-2
Attendance: 294
Wakefield AFC Starting XI:
Drew Bremer – Bolton Makwedza, Chris Salt, T’Nique Fishley – Igor Mlynarski, Mo Conteh, Billy Mole (C), Owen Thomas – Tom Hinton, Callum Nicell – Ash Flynn
Wakefield AFC Subs Used:
58m, Lance Friedrich for Billy Mole
58m, Oli Robinson for Callum Nicell
58m, Eliel Anku for Bolton Makwedza
89m, Corey McCombe for Ash Flynn
Possession:
Selby Town 53% – 47% Wakefield AFC
Passes Completed:
Selby Town 207 – 208 Wakefield AFC
Goals:
11m, Harry Clapham
21m, Tom Hinton
60m, Tom Hinton
Wakefield AFC Assists:
60m, Oli Robinson
Wakefield AFC Cards:
Callum Nicell (Yellow)
Attempts
Wakefield AFC
First Half
Shots on Target: 3
Shots off Target: 0
Second Half
Shots on Target: 4
Shot off Target: 3
Selby Town
First Half
Shots on Target: 2
Shots off Target: 0
Second Half
Shots on Target: 2
Shots off Target: 2
Crowle Colts Match Stats
Half Time: 0-1
Full Time: 0-3
Attendance: 133
Wakefield AFC Starting XI:
Drew Bremer – Bolton Makwedza, Chris Salt (C), T’Nique Fishley – Igor Mlynarski, Billy Mole, Mo Conteh, Owen Thomas – Tom Hinton, Lance Friedrich – Ash Flynn
Wakefield AFC Subs Used:
67m, Eliel Anku for Tom Hinton
82m, Oli Robinson for Lance Friedrich
83m, Kenneth Effah for Bolton Makwedza
85m, Corey McCombe for Billy Mole
Possession:
Crowle Colts 42% – 58% Wakefield AFC
Passes Completed:
Crowle Colts 164 – 245 Wakefield AFC
Goals:
45m, Tom Hinton
64m, Ash Flynn (Pen)
66m, Tom Hinton
Wakefield AFC Assists:
66m, Ash Flynn
Wakefield AFC Cards:
Bolton Makwedza (Yellow)
Attempts
Wakefield AFC
First Half
Shots on Target: 2
Shots off Target: 5
Second Half
Shots on Target: 3
Shot off Target: 4
Crowle Colts
First Half
Shots on Target: 0
Shots off Target: 3
Second Half
Shots on Target: 2
Shots off Target: 1