In pictures: Warrington Town promoted to National League North

Despite seeing captain Josh Amis sent off for an off-the-ball incident with 10 minutes to go, the Yellows struck in the final minute of regular time as Isaac Buckley-Ricketts steered home Jay Harris' scuffed shot inside the penalty area to spark wild scenes inside a sold-out Cantilever Park.

The Yellows, who have fallen at the final hurdle in the last two completed seasons, will join Julio Arca's South Shields in the league above next season, after the Mariners were crowned champions of the division.

Town's promotion was helped in large part thanks to a club record 22-game unbeaten run which only came to an end away at Shields in the penultimate week of the regular season.

Manager Mark Beesley, who has been at the club since 2016 but only stepped up from assistant to manager in November 2021 following the departure of predecessor Paul Carden, heaped praise upon his squad following the full-time whistle.

He said: “I can’t praise the players enough, they’ve been absolutely outstanding.

“We came in on June 26 and the goal was promotion. We wanted to win the league, we couldn’t and we finished second. Then it was about getting up through the only other way, which was the play-offs.

“The players, to a man, have been absolutely outstanding. [Bamber Bridge] changed their system to stop us playing, which they did, and credit to them.

“We weren’t at our best, and it can happen in finals. People get nervous, a bit of apprehension, they don’t want to lose.

“We just said at half-time, ‘be a little bit braver’. We brought Sean [Williams] on and he made the difference. He gave us that little bit of calmness in possession.”

Take a look at some of the best post-match photos after the Yellows sealed promotion at the death.

Photo credit: Darren Murphy