SO it finished in a draw. I guess that was the way it was always meant to be. But football was the real winner on the day and that was the best result we could have hoped for.
It was quite simply a great game of football. Ironically, given the hype surrounding it, it was like a boxing match. Two teams standing toe-to-toe, trading blows, ultimately decided on a split points decision.
But it was not just on the pitch where credit was due. The Willington fans travelled south in great numbers to support their team and it led to one of the best atmospheres ever witnessed at a Northern League Division Two match.
The chants and banter between both sets of fans was terrific and it was all done in the best possible taste. No animosity at all and a friendly drink in the bar afterwards.
To be honest, I was not sure what to expect. I knew some Willington fans still looked on me as public enemy number one, and with very good reason, so I thought it best to keep a low profile.
I had a nice chat with the Willington secretary Geoff Siddle in the clubhouse before the match but I thought it best to keep a distance from the fans so as not to cause any unnecessary bad feeling.
To be fair most were fine. Yes, I did get the odd dirty look thrown in my direction, understandable really, but some came over to say hello and there was no hint of trouble.
The game itself certainly lived up to all the pre-match hype. It looked like being a long day for me when the visitors scored first after just 16 minutes but it was an open game as expected so it was clear that would not be the only goal.
It developed into an absorbing contest, the type you cannot take your eyes off for a second. It seemed something was always happening. And Town scored twice before the break to make that half time cuppa taste a little bit sweeter.
The second half was just as exciting and the atmosphere, which had been bubbling all afternoon, reached a crescendo when Willington scored twice in a minute midway through the half. They couldn't beat us again, could they?
For a long period it looked as though they would. But Town are nothing if not resilient and there are few better feelings in football than a last minute equaliser. It was not a goal of any real beauty; forced home from a yard by the shoulder of Kokesy - redemption after his red card at their place in the cup - but the celebrations were certainly of supermodel proportions.
We could even have nicked it at the death too but I think the draw was probably the only fitting result on the day. Both sets of fans deserved to have something to cheer about at the end.
I have to say I was very dismissive of the Willington team after that FA Vase meeting in September. I thought they were a poor side that day and was upset that we had managed to lose to them, even with 9 men. But what a turn around. Despite having pretty much the same group of players they looked a completely different side.
In David (or is it Adam?) Pinkney and Corey Nicholson they had two of the outstanding performers on the day. In fact young Nicholson is the best right back that I have seen this season, our own Banksy apart of course.
Then you have the Willington fans. They are a passionate bunch. They want their team to win and we can all relate to that. But I let one idiot; not even a Willington fan as it turned out, cloud my judgement on the people and the place as a whole after our last meeting, and that was completely wrong.
It was during the second half, with Willington 3-2 ahead, that it really hit home to me. Their fans were cheering on their team and I saw exactly how much it meant to them. All they wanted was to see their boys win.
I took a few minutes for reflection. The sweeping comments I made were not fair. I wanted to approach the vocal section of the Willington fans and tell them personally but we had a game to win and I soon became far too absorbed in that.
Unfortunately I was unable to do so afterwards either. I am always busy immediately after a home game; phoning in the result to the league, recording a match report for BBC Radio York and doing the post-match interviews. So I am doing it now. Somehow it seems appropriate this way.
So a day I was both excited about and dreading at the same time turned out it to be one of the best days I have ever witnessed at football. Faith restored.
Of course there will always be some residents of Willington who will never forgive me. But I hope that this weekend has shown we are not that much different, them and I. We all love our team and want to see them win.
But on the day, football was the real winner. The Northern League is one big football community and I would like to think that the part of that community that was separated in the aftermath of my last blog piece has now been re-joined.
Perhaps a stronger bond between the clubs has been formed. I certainly hope so.
Last time I called Willington the land that time forgot but I am singing to a different tune this time. Redemption Song. Amen to that.
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