Former Woking ‘keeper Ashley Bayes produced a string of astonishing second half saves to deny his former club and inspire Grays Athletic to their second consecutive FA Trophy victory.
Knocked out of the Conference National play-offs by Halifax Town in midweek, Grays bounced back to produce a performance, which, despite a spirited second half rally from Woking, was at times intoxicating, always committed and certainly worthy of a major FA Final.
Bayes needed to be at his sharpest to produce a brilliant diving save to keep out a Stephen Evans free-kick moments after half-time and then to thwart the onrushing Craig McAllister’s rasping drive with an instinctive parry.
But he reserved his best saves for near the end, twice denying the Conference National’s second top scorer Justin Richards when the muscular striker looked odds on to score.
First he deflected with his feet when Richards rampaged in from the right and shot low for the far corner and then in the dying seconds he beat away Richards’ clean hit from three yards out.
"He’s such a good pro," said Grays manager Mark Stimson, who has tasted victory in The FA Trophy as both player and coach. "He works so hard. He gives so much to the other players. A lot of the younger guys feed off his confidence and his doctrine, which is to enjoy life to the full.
"He sets himself such high standards - I think he’d have been disappointed if he had conceded today, but that’s not to take anything away from his performance which was truly outstanding."
Despite Bayes’ heroics, man-of-the-match went to Michael Kightly, whose link-up play with the masterly Dennis Oli and gifted Aaron McLean was the decisive feature of a one-sided first half.
Grays showed little sign of their Conference National disappointment when, after an exploratory opening quarter, they began to make their slick one touch football tell.
Aware that in Nethercott and Hutchinson Woking had two centre backs capable of repelling an aerial threat, they kept the ball down and at times, quite literally rang rings around them.
It seemed, though, that Woking had weathered the storm as Oli, Martin, Kightly and McLean all spurned chances created from intricate build-up play.
Then with Woking looking to build some pressure of their own at the end of the half, a poor pass from Gary McDonald was cut out by Thurgood who released the admirable Kightly in space on the right.
The rangy 20-year-old took out three defenders on the edge of the box and fed Oli who despite a poor first touch, recovered to poke the ball past a dismayed Jalal.
Three minutes later came the second as Thurgood again fed Kightly who managed in a flay of arms and legs to help the ball on to the unmarked Poole who nodded in his 21st goal of the season.
If Woking had their moments in the second half, Grays missed three gilt edged chances of their own, Martin impossibly heading past the post when set up brilliantly by Kightly’s teasing cross, Oli dragging a shot wide and Thurgood rattling the upright after a clever step over and thumping shot.
"It’s been a real challenge this week," said Stimson. "We were so down on Wednesday after the play-off defeat.
"But the boys knew just what a big game this was – and how they responded.
"Of course we are bitterly disappointed not to have made it to the Football League, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. There are things we need to do to make that dream a reality, but these things, unless you are very lucky, take time.
"All I can say is I am proud of this club and I’m proud of a side who have been willing to play the game the way I have wanted them to play it. There were times this season when they might have lost faith, but they never did. They have earned their reward today."