Exeter City 3-2 Carlisle United (agg: 6-5)
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Former Carlisle loanee Jack Stacey had never scored for Exeter before
Jack Stacey's 95th-minute winner saw Exeter beat Carlisle to reach the League Two play-off final after an extraordinary 6-5 win on aggregate.
After the first leg had ended 3-3, Exeter led when David Wheeler pulled back for Ollie Watkins to net early on.
Watkins bent in his and Exeter's second on 79 minutes, but Jason Kennedy soon scrambled one back as Carlisle rallied.
John O'Sullivan headed a late leveller but there was still time for Stacey to drill into the top corner to win it.
Paul Tisdale's side will face Blackpool in the final on Sunday, 28 May for the right to play in League One next season.
The Tangerines beat Luton in the other semi-final - also 6-5 on aggregate and also courtesy of a 95th-minute winner on a remarkable night for League Two.
The Hatters had looked to be on course for Wembley when Danny Hylton's penalty put them ahead on aggregate, but Armand Gnanduillet's equaliser and a last-gasp own goal from goalkeeper Stuart Moore sent the Tangerines to the final.
Carlisle run out of fightback time
Carlisle, who spent much of the campaign in the automatic promotion places, had a strong first-half penalty appeal turned down when Troy Brown appeared to handle a Luke Joyce cross.
Keith Curle's visitors came from two goals down in both legs of the tie, with 25 goals now scored between the sides in their past five meetings.
O'Sullivan, who scored off the bench in each leg, got the Cumbrians' ninth equaliser against Exeter over that period but they had no time to respond to Stacey's fine winner, the Reading loanee's first goal for the club.
The former Carlisle loanee's stunning strike saw Exeter - who were last in League One in the 2011-12 campaign - finally beat a fellow play-off side this season at the eighth time of asking.
Exeter were bottom of League Two in November, with only Newport and relegated Leyton Orient spending more days in the drop zone than them this term.
Ollie Watkins' brace had seen Exeter lead by two goals with 11 minutes to play
Carlisle looked to have forced extra time when John O'Sullivan made it 2-2
But it was Paul Tisdale's side celebrating at the final whistle
Exeter boss Paul Tisdale told BBC Radio Devon:
"If it had gone to extra time we would've won it, because we had that mentality.
"Once they scored their goal there was a strange acceptance that we'd have to score another.
"They've come back at us so many times - they're so good at it - that we just thought 'crikey, we're just going to keep attacking'.
"It's been a very determined last 30 games to go from the bottom of the league to the play-off final, and we've still got more to go."
Carlisle boss Keith Curle told BBC Radio 5 live:
"I'm very proud of the players and the football club - we can walk out of here with our heads held high.
"We gave a very good team a run for their money.
"I had to walk into the changing room and listen to what success sounded like in Exeter celebrating and that hurts - that has to be a spur for us individually.
"The building blocks, the foundations are here - we've had to put them in place over a short period - you look at Exeter, the manager's been here for eight, nine, 10 years to do that."
- Published16 May 2017
