Mani Dieseruvwe, who scored Rochdale’s equaliser six minutes into stoppage time, celebrates after the penalty shootout. Photograph: Paul Harding/Getty Images
Tobi Adebayo-Rowling celebrates promotion with the Rochdale fans. Photograph: Bradley Collyer/PA
Rochdale have regained their place in the Football League after a thrilling National League playoff final against Boreham Wood, winning 3-1 on penalties following a 2-2 draw after extra time.
The match saw Boreham Wood take a 2-0 lead through Matt Rush (22nd minute) and Abdul Abdulmalik (69th minute). However, Rochdale fought back with goals from Josh Smith (78th minute) and a dramatic 97th-minute equaliser from Mani Dieseruvwe, forcing extra time and eventually penalties.
For Rochdale fans, the victory was almost too much to bear after the emotional rollercoaster of the previous fortnight. Two weeks earlier, Dieseruvwe had scored a 95th-minute winner against York, only for York to snatch the National League title in the 103rd minute. That last-ditch defeat could have broken the team, but Rochdale’s resilience shone through.
Having been in League One as recently as 2020-21, the club faced financial turmoil and narrowly avoided liquidation. Now solvent again, they return to League Two in remarkable fashion.
“I feel like it was destined to end this way,” said Rochdale manager Jimmy McNulty. “The season itself has been incredible: the points tally, the performances, the guts, the character, the late goals. At 2-0 down, it’s tricky, but our belief was still there. It does feel like some sort of footballing justice was served today.”
For Boreham Wood, the defeat was heartbreaking. Manager Luke Garrard, a veteran of over 500 games in charge, has now lost two playoff finals at Wembley. “Unfortunately, we had one foot in the EFL and it wasn’t to be,” said a tearful Garrard. “I thought I liked Wembley, but I’m not a fan of it. I’ve been here twice now and not been victorious. I can’t look my kids in the face because they will think daddy has failed.”
Rochdale’s victory was secured by 18-year-old goalkeeper Oliver Whatmuff, on loan from Manchester City, who saved two penalties in the shootout. Whatmuff began the weekend named in the National League Team of the Season and ended it as Rochdale’s hero.
