Saturday 28th March 2026 | Austin Ainsworth
Although Wakefield’s play-off position is now secure and – with Dearne & District confirmed as worthy NCEL Division One winners – any hope of a late title push long gone; it is still all to play for for The Falcons in the league, who faced two real tests this past week.
Wakefield had seen the end of an imperious run of results with a couple of mixed performances, their winning momentum stopped with a draw and loss in their last three matches, before somewhat of a turnaround last time out with a four goal win away to Appleby Frodingham. That confidence boost would have been all important heading into a midweek fixture against their main rivals for second spot in the league, Worsbrough Bridge Athletic.
The timing of the game was as though it was written in a script; Wakefield still in the driving seat for second place nine points clear of Worsbrough, though Worsbrough with three games in hand and perhaps smelling blood after Wakefield’s recent wobble. One thing was for sure, both sides will have recognised how crucial a win was toward their hopes of finishing second and with that, securing home advantage for the play-offs.
Wakefield manager Jason Blunt made just one change to the side victorious against Appleby Frodingham, Aaron Pilkington – returning for his third stint with The Falcons – starting in place of Matthew Swift.
With the wind and rain at biblical levels, the conditions perhaps played a part in what was a chaotic opening few minutes. Worsbrough struck first, utilising the wind – which was behind them – to pump a long throw into the box which was met by Keelan Grist with a glancing header to the back post to take the lead after just two minutes.
Wakefield were soon back in the game with a similar goal up the other end, as Owen Thomas launched a throw into the box which Akeel Francis flicked on to the back post. Oli Robinson was then on hand to dispatch a controlled volley into the top corner for his fifth goal of the season.
Just as soon as Wakefield had found their feet in the game, they were pegged back again almost immediately from kick-off. This time a long ball upfield was only half-cleared by the Wakefield defence, and eventually fell to Connor Glavin who finished well, beyond the reach of Drew Bremer in the Wakefield goal.
From then on the game was evenly contested, with half-chances for each side but no real sign of another goal. That was until a moment midway through the half that changed the game, as Worsbrough sprung an attack with an incisive pass from midfield that caught the Wakey defence flat-footed. A Worsbrough attacker broke free and tussled with the recovering Samuel Pashley, going to ground just as it appeared the ball would roll beyond him and into the grasp of Bremer.
The referee deemed it a foul and, more devastatingly for Wakefield, the denial of a clear goalscoring opportunity, meaning Pashley was given his marching orders with a red card. The only saving grace for the now depleted home side was it occurred just outside the box, and the resultant free-kick was wasted.
Wakefield made it to half-time without further damage and, heroically, were arguably the better side in the second half. They dominated the ball and – in a game of few chances – looked the most likely to score a goal. And, despite their numerical disadvantage, Blunt threw the kitchen sink at it; defenders making way for attackers and large gaps left in the hope of finding an equaliser.
The home side did come close towards the end of the match in a period of sustained pressure; once when Worsbrough cleared the ball off the line after a corner-kick went bouncing across the box and was diverted towards goal, and then when Chris Salt saw a towering header narrowly miss the goal.
However, any momentum that was building into injury time was halted when a melee broke out on the touchline after a Mo Conteh foul, following which the Worsbrough player clung to his leg on the floor and feigned a stamp. Conteh was initially shown a yellow card, before the linesman intervened and the referee sent him off. It was a baffling decision given how close to the action the referee was and has since been overturned by the league, but that came too late to help Wakefield, whose nine remaining men were unable to fashion one last chance.
With that result Wakefield remained second but only six points clear of Worsbrough who still had the three matches in hand. That meant, heading into the weekend trip to Maltby, Wakefield had no more room for error.
Blunt made changes, Salt coming back into the starting line-up for Pashley and Eliel Anku in place of Robinson, meaning Wakefield effectively lined up in an attacking 4-4-2 formation. There was again a fierce wind to contend with, along with Maltby’s sloping pitch, but Wakefield had both to their advantage in the first half.
Wakefield saw good moments when the ball was worked out to the wings, with the midfield anchors of Jay Davies and Tom Hinton spraying the ball from side-to-side but, despite much threat and trickery, particularly from Basile Zottos, Wakefield’s attacks kept breaking down.
The conditions didn’t help in what was a bitty game, with Maltby having a brief period in the first half where they showed their threat, in particular when a gap was left for their striker to collect a long ball and shoot close to goal.
However, it was Wakefield who took the lead in the 32nd minute after Ethan Kachosa was brought down in the box. Akeel Francis, having reached a milestone 50 games last time out, stepped up and slotted the ball into the corner for what is his 29th goal in 51 games, and now 17 for this season.
He also went close again moments later with some excellent control to turn in the box and fire a wicked shot across goal from a tight angle, the ball narrowly missing the top corner.
Wakefield did eventually find a second in injury time of the first half when a corner was taken short on the left to Kachosa, who weaved infield and delivered a teasing, in-swinging cross for Owen Thomas to drill a precise header into goal.
With the wind and slope to contend with in the second half, even the two goal lead didn’t feel comfortable for Wakefield, particularly when injuries and fatigue led to a host of substitutions; Hinton departing early in the second period and later goalscorer Thomas. With Wakefield’s squad already depleted, particularly in midfield areas, the changes saw Francis partner a tiring Davies – who had given everything in what was his best performance for the club – in midfield.
That left Wakefield looking somewhat unbalanced and vulnerable to the counter attack. For the most part the away side dealt with the challenge without fuss, Salt putting in one of his typical, domineering performances to head everything clear, and his defensive partners and Bremer behind them doing the rest.
However, a bump in the road came 10 minutes from time when Pilkington was punished for a foul from behind in his own box. A penalty was awarded – along with just a yellow card – and ex-Wakey winger Curtis Morrison stepped up to pick the same spot Francis had in the first half.
That left a nerve-wracking final few minutes for Wakefield, not least when Maltby were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the box close to the end of normal time. Bremer saved the low effort but parried it right back to the feet of a Maltby attacker, though somehow recovered to close the gap and see the ball out, much to the relief of the travelling Wakefield fans.
In the end, Wakefield held on for the crucial win and were further buoyed by the knowledge that Worsbrough could only draw their game, meaning Wakefield’s cushion in second place extends back to seven points. Wakefield now have just two games left of the regular season, this Friday at home to Ilkley Town, and then away on the 11th April to in-form Route One Rovers (kick-offs 19:45PM and 15:00PM respectively). Wakefield’s sole aim will be to win both games in the hope that Worsbrough slip up in one of their remaining five fixtures and, more importantly, to take some positive form into the play-offs.
Maltby Main Match Stats
Half Time: 0-2
Full Time: 1-2
Attendance: 142
Wakefield AFC Starting XI:
Drew Bremer – Aaron Pilkington, Chris Salt, Mo Conteh, Owen Thomas – Tom Hinton, Jay Davies – Basile Zottos, Akeel Francis (C), Eliel Anku, Ethan Kachosa
Wakefield AFC Subs Used:
57m, Jerome Greaves for Tom Hinton
71m, Oli Robinson for Owen Thomas
90m, Samuel Pashley for Eliel Anku
90m+5, Jordao Costa for Jay Davies
Possession:
Maltby Main 31% – 69% Wakefield AFC
Passes Completed:
Maltby Main 97 – 194 Wakefield AFC
Goals:
32m, Akeel Francis (Pen)
49m, Owen Thomas
Wakefield AFC Assists:
49m, Ethan Kachosa
Wakefield AFC Cards:
Aaron Pilkington (Yellow)
Chris Salt (Yellow)
Attempts
Wakefield AFC
First Half
Shots on Target: 4
Shots off Target: 5
Second Half
Shots on Target: 6
Shot off Target: 2
Maltby Main
First Half
Shots on Target: 0
Shots off Target: 2
Second Half
Shots on Target: 2
Shots off Target: 1
Worsbrough Bridge Match Stats
Half Time: 0-3
Full Time: 0-3
Attendance: 302
Wakefield AFC Starting XI:
Drew Bremer – Aaron Pilkington, Samuel Pashley, Mo Conteh, Owen Thomas – Tom Hinton, Jay Davies – Basile Zottos – Oli Robinson, Akeel Francis (C), Ethan Kachosa
Wakefield AFC Subs Used:
33m, Chris Salt for Oli Robinson
62m, Eliel Anku for Jay Davies
67m, Silas Valladolid-Collins for Basile Zottos
85m, Jerome Greaves for Aaron Pilkington
Possession:
Wakefield AFC 72% – 28% Worsbrough Bridge Athletic
Passes Completed:
Wakefield AFC 280 – 109 Worsbrough Bridge Athletic
Goals:
2m, Keelan Grist
7m, Oli Robinson
8m, Connor Glavin
Wakefield AFC Assists:
7m, Akeel Francis
Wakefield AFC Cards:
Samuel Pashley (Red)
Chris Salt (Yellow)
Mo Conteh (Red)
Attempts
Wakefield AFC
First Half
Shots on Target: 1
Shots off Target: 1
Second Half
Shots on Target: 1
Shot off Target: 1
Worsbrough Bridge Athletic
First Half
Shots on Target: 3
Shots off Target: 2
Second Half
Shots on Target: 1
Shots off Target: 0