Halifax Town were victorious in their Isuzu FA Trophy Semi-Final, defeating Altrincham on penalties.
Alty were very much the better side in the first half, and eventually, they did break the deadlock in the 44th minute, as Jordan Hulme flicked home a Josh Lundstram strike to send them into the break as 1-0 leaders.
However, they couldn't add to their tally in the second half, despite having numerous good chances to settle the tie - Shaymen stopper Sam Johnson was mostly to thank for that.
Hope was slowly running out for the visitors and were lucky to still be in with a chance. But then came a miracle strike from Millenic Alli in the 95th minute, a low effort from distance finding the bottom corner to send the game to an unanticipated penalty shootout.
Johnson's heroics continued into the spot-kicks and his two saves contributed to a 3-2 win, as Robins substitute Tyrese Sinclair struck the crossbar to confirm Town's famous victory.
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Story of the match
Phil Parkinson made a mass change to his Alty side that were beaten by Notts County in midweek, with six players returning to the starting lineup, including the likes of James Jones and Jordan Hulme, who were on the scoresheet in the quarter-final.
In an equal bid to secure his team a spot in the Wembley final, Halifax boss Chris Millington opted to reinstate Emmanuel Dieseruvwe, Jesse Debrah, and Millenic Alli back into the eleven following a 2-0 success at home to Aldershot on Tuesday.
The opening few minutes were largely dominated by the visitors, but Altrincham returnee Maxi Oyedele gave his opponents an early taste of his capabilities with a darting run towards the edge of the box before unleashing a low strike which was a relatively easy first test for goalkeeper Sam Johnson.
Joe Hugill also came close for Alty eleven minutes in, edging into the area but bending his effort inches wide of the right post at the final stage, merely moments after Halifax had recorded their first shot on target through a tame Millenic Alli drive.
The pressure continued for the hosts though, as Isaac Marriott was next to try his luck from distance, curling into the welcoming arms of Johnson thirteen minutes in.
Yet still, the 30-year-old 'keeper hadn't really been troubled hugely as the game approached the twenty-minute mark, and that remained the case as he comfortably caught a header from Miles Welch-Hayes.
A rare opportunity for the Shaymen came to nothing shortly after, Tylor Golden putting a little too much height on his strike from outside the box.
Back down the other end of the pitch, the Halifax stopper was eventually forced into an excellent save, reacting well to keep out a brilliant Hulme effort from inside the box.
All eyes remained on the Town box heading into the final ten minutes of the first half, particularly due to some good link-up play between Josh Lundstram and Eddy Jones down at the byline, which saw the latter burst towards goal before watching his fierce close-range shot deflect over the bar.
Aiming to find something against the run of play, a corner three minutes shy of the break almost did that for Halifax - Mani Dieseruvwe rose highest to nod at goal, only for his header to ricochet off Harvey Gilmour and into the arms of a very relieved Ollie Byrne.
However the deadlock would be broken before the interval, and it came as no surprise that Altrincham were the side to find the opener in the 44th minute.
A cross in from the right found James Jones in front of goal, and after his initial strike was superbly blocked by a defender, the ball fell to Lundstram whose follow-up was cleverly flicked home by Hulme to give the Robins the advantage going into the half time break.
The hosts started the second half in the same fashion as they finished the first - Kyle Ferguson played a delightful pass across to Hugill on the right, but the striker's low attempt wasn't fierce enough to cause any issues for Johnson, seven minutes after the restart.
A couple of minutes later came a decent chance for the Yorkshire outfit, Alli having his shot parried wide by Byrne and the follow-up from Matty Warburton also fantastically denied by the leg of the Alty 'keeper.
The jam-packed action continued with Welch-Hayes failing to capitalize as he cut inside while throwing the defender off the scent, but his low strike was blocked by Johnson before the Shaymen eventually cleared out of danger.
A gilt-edged opportunity for Oyedele after 65 minutes saw him run through on goal, his selfishness getting the better of him, dragging wide of the far post.
Although the away side were slightly better in the second half, they didn't create a great deal, and whenever they did, there was no end product - Dieseruvwe provided an example with fifteen left on the clock, somehow stabbing wide from point-blank range.
Yet there was still only one goal in the game, to much surprise, and Oyedele wasn't far off making it two, moving into the middle to fling narrowly wide of the top left corner.
Eight minutes remaining and Hulme's goal was on course to send Alty to Wembley; Hugill almost confirmed that as he took the ball past the last man to race through on goal, but when trying to knock it past the in-form Halifax 'keeper, an outstretched leg prevented him from doubling the well-earnt advantage.
Hope was starting to dissolve for the travelling contingent, and a stoppage in injury time due to a pyrotechnic thrown on the pitch from the away end fortuitously salvaged penalties for the visitors.
In the dying seconds, a ball played across to Alli proved to be key, as the forward took a touch outside the box before optimistically powering home into the bottom corner as pure ecstasy ensued behind the goal - the team to travel to Wembley would be decided through a nail-biting penalty shootout.
Penalties
Shooting towards the bouncing but roofless away end, substitute Elliott Osborne stepped up first for Alty and set the tone, dispatching down the middle.
Maybe things were beginning to swing in the favour of the hosts again - Jack Senior failed to level for Halifax with Byrne diving left and managing to punch clear the spot-kick.
Hugill took his chance to put the Robins two goals up in the shootout, but only just found the bottom corner, before Luke Summerfield remained calm and composed with his successful strike.
Once more, the script was flipped, as Eddy Jones paid the price for a poor penalty, and Jamie Stott took advantage to make it 2-2.
Oyedele, who had missed multiple chances to put the game to bed in normal time, again cost the hosts, choosing to go right but so did the Town 'keeper.
Dieseruvwe's well-taken spot-kick put Halifax potentially one save away from the FA Trophy Final; fans had their hearts in their mouths as Tyrese Sinclair made the long nervy walk from the halfway line.
The Alty man placed the ball on the spot, and prepared for his moment, hoping for a miracle, but sadly for the 22-year-old, there wasn't going to be a trip to the capital, striking the crossbar, as the elated Halifax supporters opted for a mini pitch invasion to celebrate the success.
Despite an incredible comeback from Barnet in the other semi-final against Gateshead which ended 3-3, it was the Heed who came out on top in penalties and will face the Shaymen in the final on May 21st.
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Player of the match
Sam Johnson (Halifax Town)
The Halifax 'keeper doesn't just deserve credit for the penalty shootout, but his heroics throughout the ninety incredibly allowed Altrincham to just a single goal, with the countless chances they had.