Bedford Town continued their extraordinary run in Southern League Premier Central on Saturday (12 April), coming from 2-0 down to win 3-2 away at Lowestoft Town.
Leon Lobjoit was once again the match winner with the clock on ninety minutes as Bedford Town came from behind again to steal all three points and continue their unexpected march towards a step three league title.
The defeat also relegated Lowestoft Town to step four, alongside Hitchin Town and Biggleswade Town.
On paper, Lowestoft Town were supposed to be one of the simpler games of the Eagles’ run in, but Bedford found themselves behind the eight ball by half-time.
Bedford Town had the best chance of the opening minutes, as eventual match winner Lobjoit planted a shot over the bar, before Harvey Sayer saw an effort flash across the face of goal for the home side.
Both teams looked to be going into the interval deadlocked before Lowestoft provided a double sucker punch.
Joao Soares-Rangel was the one to open the scoring in fortuitous fashion as his effort from the left edge of the penalty area took a wicked deflection to beat Macauley, before Sayer picked himself up to double the lead from the spot with 50 minutes on the first half clock.
The comeback kings strike again
There were no doubt some strong words again from manager, Lee Bircham at the break, but not for the first time this season, Bedford Town set about creating a comeback that would cause mayhem come the final whistle.
It took almost 25 minutes of the second half to gain a goal back; Tarrelle Whittaker, who joined from Enfield Town in March, opened the floodgates before Junior Gyamfi scored his second in as many games to restore parity just two minutes later.
Gyamfi was quickest to react in the penalty area with the ball pinging around and the home side unable to clear, but went from hero to zero in the space of seconds as he was shown a red card in a fracas in the goal, with a Lowestoft player also sent off.
The goal scorer had gone to try and collect the ball from the net, only to be stopped in his tracks by Travis Cole before a melee ensued, with both Gyamfi and Cole seeing red.
Despite both teams going down to ten men, in the space of three minutes, Bedford Town had gone from being up against it to genuine favourites.
Bruno Andrade and Ryan Blake both had efforts kept out by Warren Burwood in the Lowestoft goal before that man Lobjoit cropped up again with the clock in the red to seal the clincher.
A long ball from Blake found Lobjoit, who beat the offside trap, and he fired home at the second time of asking to put Bedford Town into an unassailable 3-2 lead, sealing another three points for their 22nd league victory of the season.
With AFC Telford, Halesowen, Stamford and Harborough Town all dropping points in behind, it gives Lee Bircham’s men a bit of breathing room in the race for one of the nation’s more intriguing title races.
They are also ten points clear of sixth-placed, Stratford Town with three games remaining, guaranteeing Bedford Town a spot in the play-offs.
A target of the play-offs would have been a pipe dream back in August, but the season has turned out as such that the Eagles must now be considered favourites for a step three title for the ages.
Bedford Town are back in action on Saturday 19 April as they host Stratford Town at The Eyrie, before games against Hitchin Town and Stourbridge that could seal the most madcap of seasons.
