When Salford City boss Karl Robinson arrived at Boundary Park for the “biggest game” of his two-year and three-month tenure at the club, he could scarcely have imagined the day unfolding more favourably.
His side began the afternoon sixth in League Two, effectively four points off third-placed Cambridge United due to their much inferior goal difference, and six points above play-off-chasing Grimsby, who have proved their quality by completing a league double over Salford and knocking Manchester United out of the League Cup.
As Robinson’s players went through their pre-match warm-up ahead of their game against Greater Manchester rivals Oldham and away supporters filed into the ground having completed the shortest journey of the season, more than 130 miles away the first breaks of the day were going Salford’s way.
In Wiltshire, Swindon Town’s automatic promotion hopes were dealt a blow as Accrington Stanley midfielder Luke Butterfield snatched a 92nd-minute equaliser in the early kick-off, opening the door for The Ammies to climb above them with a win.
Salford seized that opportunity, producing a blistering first-half performance that began when centre-back Adebola Oluwo powered home Luke Garbutt’s cross with a 4th-minute header and ended with Daniel Udoh’s composed stoppage-time finish to give Robinson’s side a deserved lead at the break; one that the manager was delighted by.
“I thought we were brilliant in the first half, the way we moved the ball and how efficient we were,” he said, smiling after the game.
Oldham, whose outside chances of a play-off finish faded in a calamitous 3-2 loss at Barrow on Tuesday, have been resurgent in the second half of the season and were entitled to improve. They halved the deficit just after the hour mark when Josh Hawkes finished a lightning-fast move with a delightful lob. However, that stylish finish would prove to be little more than a consolation as determined Salford defending repelled a fightback to earn a 2-1 win.
Robinson reserved special praise for goalscorer Oluwo, who set the tone in a match the manager believed was one of the most important of his tenure.
“I thought Ade Oluwo was outstanding,” added the overjoyed 45-year-old coach, whose hopes of a second promotion in his managerial career were strengthened as results elsewhere fell in Salford’s favour.
Ade Oluwo heading us into an early lead ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/nbEtVvBhLs
— Salford City FC (@SalfordCityFC) April 18, 2026
A brace from Barnet striker Kabongo Tshimanga earned Barnet a 2-1 win at Notts County, another side who started the day above Salford but stalled with the finish line in sight.
Notts County’s defeat meant Bromley became the first side to earn promotion to League One. Robinson will hope the hangover from the leaders’ promotion celebrations lasts until Thursday, when they travel to Salford for the penultimate game of the season.
Throughout his time at the helm, Robinson has rarely entertained talk of fixtures further ahead. The next match is always the most important. Now, on the touchline at Oldham and watching Salford’s promotion chances strengthen over the course of the day, he stressed the importance of beating Bromley to ensure the team travel to Crawley on the final day with their promotion hopes alive.
“We’ve got to hope now that we can put our front foot forward and get another three points on Thursday to hopefully take it to the last game of the season,” he explained.
On a day where nearly everything went right, Robinson reflected on the progress Salford have made this season and allowed himself to dream of a perfect ending to the campaign.
“We have now broken the record with the FA Cup, we’ve broken the most amount of points ever in the EFL, we’ve been the highest we’ve been, our points tally is amazing and we’re still not done.”
