With Chasetown beating Hanley, the result against Mossley didn’t matter for league position, but it did for pride, and the team did themselves proud.

Celtic got the ball in the back of the net in the opening five minutes from a corner. Flicked on at the near post by Jack Irlam, Finaly Madigan made an excellent stop from Jack Tinning’s header, the loose ball coming to Joe Duckworth whose shot hit the roof of the net, cleared from behind the line by Mateusz Kardacz, no goal given despite protests, and Madigan denied Rawsthorn’s poke with a clawed save to scoop the ball around the post. Despite protestations, the score remained goalless. Joseph Berks and Michael Brewster both had chances for the home side, the former lacking power the latter precision. At the other end, Joe Duckworth had the beating of Madison, but Kardacz denied him with a block, whilst Mark Lees denied Benni Smales-Braithwaite with a stuck-out leg of his own.

In the previous match at Seel Park, it had been a similar story, with Mossley grabbing two in the second half, though in that game the goals came without reply. After Liam Tongue’s decent effort, but to close to Madison, Obua Mugalula forced Charlie Monks into an outstanding save, pushing the ball out for a corner. From the corner, Mugalula’s inswinger found a glancing header from Eric Yahaha to slip the ball past Monks. Whilst pressing at the other end, with Rawsthorn going agonisingly close to an equaliser, Mossley broke, Sean Kgwakwa racing three-quarters of the pitch with defenders trailing in his wake. One-on-one, Monks committed, but Kgwakwa rounded him and from an acute angle fired in a second.

Monks kept Celtic in the hunt with an excellent full stretch save to deny Jack Marrow, but with the minutes running out, Celtic threw everything at Mossley and Mossley crumbled, pulling and fouling Celtic. Kardacz fouled Joe Duckworth four yards outside the box. Courtney Meppen-Walters curled a beautiful free kick into the back of the net to pull one back with four minutes to go. Kardacz again fouled Duckworth, this time in the six-yard box as Duckworth was set to equalise. Jack Irlam converted the penalty to equalise as stoppage time loomed. With seconds left of stoppage time, Kardacz, now on a booking, took out Irlam in full flight, it should have been a second yellow, but the referee waved advantage, as Ellis Horan received the loose ball in the box, when he was dispossessed, just seconds after the foul, it wasn’t pulled back, and instead a long ball unlocked Celtic’s defence, Yahaha almost handing Mossley the three points, but for a sensational save from Monks.