Ashington bosses say win on last day of the season was 'for the fans'

The result saw the Colliers complete the double for the season over The Avenue following a 1-0 win back in September, and afterwards Gray and McIvor said: “I think the fans have been fantastic whilst I’d also like to thank all the volunteers and everyone behind the scenes.

“The fans have come down to Bradford today where there was nothing at stake to show their commitment and for me this season they have stuck with us. They could have turned against us but they didn’t.

“The fanbase has been fantastic. Monday’s defeat against Heaton Stannington was a tough one to take for all concerned but I cannot thank them (the fans) enough. Through thick and thin they have been brilliant so the win today was for the supporters for what they have given this season. There was about 60 or 70 fans who never stopped backing us. They deserve this and this is what football is for – the fans.”

Gray added: “We have finished our programme with a win. Again we were down in numbers which we have been for the last few weeks, with a lot of players injured whilst others have been playing on empty and credit to them.

“I thought today we rode our luck a couple of times but when we got our noses in front we had to dig in and I’m delighted that we kept a clean sheet and that we got the three points.”

He continued: “For the first 10-15 minutes we were all over the place. We tried something different and it wasn’t working out so we changed it and we then looked a lot more comfortable.

“Bradford Park Avenue had a couple of opportunities from corners but I thought we dealt with them quite well. They were getting a little bit of movement in the middle of the park which we identified at half time, and to be fair, after that they didn’t get on the ball and their midfield players didn’t find that space, so it’s a pleasing day.

“The season is over – now we’ll see what the future brings.”

Josh Gilchrist’s deflected goal won the contest and the striker got a pat on the back from his manager: “I’ve been saying all season that we don’t shoot enough, so credit to Josh,” added Gray.

“He pulled the trigger and, yes it took a deflection, but it was already on target.”

McIvor added: “It was an excellent three points. As Nick says, we tried something new and we need to work on it a little bit more on the training pitch. We went back to what we know and I thought we were good.”

The Ashington players wore black armbands and there was a minute’s applause as a tribute to Cecil Irwin, who passed away at the beginning of the week and Gray added: “Cecil Irwin bless him – I know some of the family and all my thoughts are with them.”