Freddie Ladapo and Marcus Harness were on target as a 2-2 draw at Fleetwood saw 10-man Town finish second in League One, former Blue Jack Marriott netting twice for the home side, while Harry Clarke saw red in injury time. Sub Ladapo put the Blues in front five minutes after half-time, but Marriott levelled seven minutes later, then put the Lancastrians ahead on 69 before Harness put Town back on terms with Clarke red-carded for a second bookable offence two minutes into time added-on.
Skipper Sam Morsy was evidently among those who manager Kieran McKenna was referring to when he said one or two players had knocks going into the match and missed out on a place in the squad but travelled, while Clarke was on the bench.
Dominic Ball and Janoi Donacien, facing his former loan club, came into the side, while Christian Walton captained for the first time. Richard Keogh, who looks set to leave the club in the summer, was on the bench.
Fleetwood made two changes from the team which lost 2-0 at Bolton last week with Carlos Mendez Gomes and Harrison Holgate coming into the team and the suspended Jayden Stockley and former Blues centre-half Toto Nsiala dropping out of the squad.
Ex-Blues striker Marriott started, while on-loan Town defender Corrie Ndaba was ineligible.
Former Blues striker Danny Haynes was in the stand on co-comms duty in one of his old Town shirts, while Mark Steed, chief investment officer of PSPRS, the pension fund which is ultimately Town’s owner, was also in the stand with his wife Jessica, as was retired Premier League referee Mike Dean.
Conor Chaplin, hoping to secure the Golden Boot and a 30th goal of the season, struck the game’s first shot in the opening minute, Luke Woolfenden having curled a cross following a half-cleared free-kick which reached the forward at the far post from where he volleyed an effort across the face and wide.
As Fleetwood keeper Jay Lynch prepared to restart, the 1,400 Town fans behind his goal began to chant ‘We are top of the league’, Port Vale having netted an early goal against previous leaders Plymouth.
Three minutes later a Leif Davis corner flashed across the area, just avoiding Wes Burns with the Blues having made a very positive start.
The Cod Army threatened for the first time in the sixth minute, Phoenix Patterson wafting a cross from deep on the right but too far in front of Promise Omochere.
There was a scare for the Blues in the 10th minute when Donacien stumbled as he sought to play the ball back to Walton, leaving him in no-man’s land. But the stand-in skipper did well to force home skipper Josh Vela wide and Fleetwood were unable to make anything of the chance.
Two minutes later, Shaun Rooney crossed from the right and the ball was flicked goalwards by Marriott but Walton, confirmed as League One’s Golden Glove winner with Bolton’s James Trafford not in action at Bristol Rovers, saved sharply.
Town were forced into a change in the 17th minute when on-loan Leicester striker George Hirst limped off. As the Blues fans sang ‘Ashton, get your chequebook out’, Ladapo took over.
Hirst ends his highly successful spell with the Blues having scored seven times in 16 starts and seven sub appearances.
Ladapo made his first contribution on 21, taking a touch to a ball chipped by Woolfenden from halfway over the backline before volleying over from 30 yards.
Two minutes later, Burns shot over from just outside the area after a Donacien cross from the right had been cleared then played to the Welshman.
Town threatened again on 26, Nathan Broadhead teeing-up Chaplin inside the area having been found following an attack down the left, but the forward’s shot was diverted over by Brendan Wiredu.
Three minutes later, after a couple of sloppy moments at the back from Burns and Woolfenden, Luongo sent Davis away on the left and the former Leeds man’s cross was punched away by Lynch ahead of Ladapo.
The Blues continued to look for opportunities, Broadhead having the ball stabbed away from him when in a promising position in the area on 34 after an intricate passing move down the left. Following the corner, Luongo’s shot was blocked by Rooney.
Town were well on top and creating chances more frequently and in the 36th minute Ladapo headed over after Davis had stood-up a cross from the left. Meanwhile, Plymouth had gone into a 2-1 lead at Vale Park.
In the 42nd minute, with Cameron Burgess down in the other half having suffered a knock, Donacien crossed from the right and Chaplin volleyed against Rooney. Burgess was able to continue after treatment.
Just before the fourth official indicated three additional minutes, Burns crossed low from the right but the sliding Chaplin was unable to get enough on the ball to divert it into the net.
Soon after, Ball played a long ball forward for Broadhead, who beat the offside trap, took a touch but smashed his shot well over.
That was the final chance of a half which during which the Blues had been well in control and had created more than enough chances to have gone in in front but with Fleetwood defenders getting themselves in the way or Town’s shooting for once wayward.
The Cod Army had a couple of chances midway through the half following a couple of slack moments at the back.
Two minutes after the restart, Ladapo held the ball up and turned it into the path of Chaplin, who shot agonisingly wide. Moments later, Burns almost played in Ladapo on the right of the box but a defender’s toe took the ball away from the Town striker.
And the goal which Town had been searching for all afternoon, number 100 for the season, finally came in the 50th minute.
Ladapo was played a bouncing ball from the right of the box, held off Wiredu and smashed his 21st goal of the campaign past Lynch, who wasn’t anticipating a shot, from a tight angle, into the net off the underside of the bar.
It was a goal out of nothing from the frontman, who has more than played his part in Town’s promotion, despite having been a sub more often than not in recent weeks.
Town went looking for a second and on 56 Chaplin’s snap-shot from the left of the box deflected behind off Wiredu.
But Town’s lead was to last only seven minutes. Omochere crossed from the right, Woolfenden and Donacien slid in to block from Patterson but the St Lucia-born defender’s attempted clearance slammed against former Blue Marriott and found the back of the net.
There was to be no final-day clean sheet for Walton, whose tally of shut-outs for the season ends on 23.
While the home side celebrated their goal, news filtered through that Plymouth had stretched their lead at Port Vale to 3-1, fading Town’s hopes of winning the title further.
On 63, Mendes Gomes struck a shot from distance which deflected wide, then Town made a double change two minutes later, Clarke and Marcus Harness replacing Donacien and Broadhead.
And four minutes after the changes, the Blues found themselves behind. A corner from the right was flicked on to the far post from where Marriott nodded his second goal of the game into the net.
But Fleetwood’s lead also wasn’t to last. In the 74th minute, Chaplin hit a shot which was blocked, but the ball fell to Harness, who hit a shot from the penalty spot into the corner of Lynch’s net off Wiredu, the summer signing from Portsmouth’s eighth goal of the season and his first since November 19th.
Two minutes after scoring, Harness found his way into the referee’s book for pulling back Carl Johnston as Fleetwood broke forward.
On 81, Ladapo shot across the face and just wide, the ball taking a touch off a defender on its way before Town made further changes, Kyle Edwards and Kayden Jackson taking over from Davis and Burns.
Almost immediately following the corner, Jackson cut back from the left to Ladapo, who was crowded out on the edge of the six-yard box.
Clarke joined fellow sub Harness in the book on 85 for a foul on Lewis Warrington, when the Town man clearly thought he’d won the ball.
The Blues were looking the side most likely to score the game’s fifth goal and on 89 Jackson was found on the right of the box but saw his effort blocked.
Two minutes into injury time, Town were reduced top 10 men for the first time in the league during 2022/23. Clarke, having been harshly booked earlier, could have few complaints about the second for a foul on Cian Hayes on halfway.
Neither side was able to find a winning goal in the remaining minutes and Town’s season ended in a draw.
The Blues had enough chances to win it but allowed Fleetwood a scruffy first goal and then the second from a set piece.
Plymouth’s 3-1 win at Port Vale means the League One silverware goes to Home Park, but Town won’t be too concerned by that with promotion by any route having been the aim at the start of the season.
Town are promoted having finished second for the first time in their history, all previous promotions having been via divisional titles with the exception of the 2000 play-off final victory.
While the Blues missed out on 100 points, they end on 98, they moved on to 101 goals, only the fourth time the club has ever hit 100 and the joint-second most ever.
Walton claims the Golden Glove and Chaplin the Golden Boot having netted 26 times in the league, shared with Peterborough's Jonson Clarke-Harris.
At the end, the Blues’ players and staff went over to applaud their fans at the end of their last game in League One.
Town end the season on a 19-game unbeaten run, the second-longest in the club’s history, ahead of a return to the Championship in August.
Fleetwood: Lynch, Wiredu, Mendes Gomes (White 69), Vela (c), Marriott, Warrington (Glenfield 86), Holgate (Teale 69), Omochere (Quitirna 83), Patterson (Hayes 87), Rooney, Johnston. Unused: McMullan, Johnson.
Town: Walton (c), Donacien (Clarke 65), Woolfenden, Burgess, Burns (Jackson 81), Ball, Luongo, Davis (Edwards 81), Chaplin, Broadhead (Harness 65), Hirst (Ladapo 19). Unused: Hladky, Keogh, Edwards, Jackson. Referee: Ross Joyce (Cleveland).