ALBION will play League One football next season despite a final day 3-0 defeat at Fleetwood Town.
First half goals from Carl Johnston and Phoenix Patterson had Albion facing a nervy second half, especially when Tommy Lonergan added a third after the break but Albion’s future was secure thanks to a victory for Stevenage over Albion’s relegation rivals Cheltenham Town, ex-Albion striker Kane Hemmings doing his former club a huge favour with a first half stoppage time penalty to set Stevenage on their way to victory.
With Joe Powell missing out through the injury picked up in the final home game against Reading there was just the one change for the last game of the season. Deji Oshilaja stepped up from the bench to replace Powell.
Albion made a positive start to the game with both Mustapha Carayol and Bobby Kamwa getting involved form wide areas in the early stages.
But for all the positivity at the start Albion found themselves a goal down on seventeen minutes when Ryan Graydon found space in midfield to thread the ball through for JOHNSTON to dart into the box and hit the top corner.
Midfielder Phoenix Patterson then whipped a 30-yard free kick ont ot the roof of the net after Mason Bennett had been booked for a challenge on Xavier Simons.
Graydon, having assisted for the goal then fancied one for himself and forced a fingertip save from Max Crocombe from just outside the box.
PATTERSON, having had that previous sighter then whipped a free kick inside the post on the half hour mark to double Fleetwood’s lead.
HALF TIME: FLEETWOOD TOWN 2-0 BURTON ALBION
Kamwa had an early sight of goal within minutes of the second half getting under way but after tricking his way into a shooting position he was denied by a sprawling swave from David Harrington in the Town goal.
Carayol, struggling with a knock, was replaced by Joe Hugill. Albion almost fashioned a goal straight after with Jasper Moon’s low cross skewed over his own bar by substituyte Finley Potter.
Albion were forced into another substitution with twenty-five minutes remaining with Kamwa also struggling to continue. Dylan Scott was summoned from the bench to replace him on the right-hand side.
Mark Helm then combined well down the left-hand side and finished by curling a speculative chance wide of the far post.
Fleetwood substitute Ronan Coughlan saw a deflected shot hit the base of the post before fellow substitute LONERGAN tapped home after Albion had been cut open on the right hand side by Coughlan.
Jasper Moon then headed off the line from Coughlan’s hooked effort as the hoe side looked to finish with a flourish.
Sam Hughes saw a late header somehow stay off via the woodwork in added time before Oshilaja headed gingerly off the pitch after a blow to the head to be replaced for the closing moments by skipper John Brayford. When the skipper took to the pitch matters at Stevenage had already finished and Albion knew that their future for next season was decided.
ALBION: Crocombe; Moon, Hughes, Sweeney, Seddon; Harper (Nsiala, 75), Oshilaja (Brayford, 90), Helm; Kamwa (Scott, 65), Bennett, Carayol (Hugill, 50)
Substitutes: Blackman, Ola-Adebomi, Gilligan.
GOALS: FLEETWOOD – Johnston (17), Patterson (31), Lonergan (76)
Referee: Simon Mather
