A year after Bromley beat Solihull Moors on penalties in a clash of two teams trying to reach the EFL for the first time, Southend and Oldham met under the Wembley Arch with a combined 216 seasons in the Football League between them.

Oldham began the brighter but the deadlock was broke inside five minutes with the first attack at their end when Gus Scott-Morriss looped a ball through the middle towards Charley Kendall, and last-man Monthe could only succeed in poking the bouncing ball past Latics keeper Mathew Hudson to roll agonisingly into the net.

In response, Tom Pett's corner kick was glanced wide by 18-goal forward Mike Fondop who was then left furious as Vimal Yoganathan beat him to Mark Kitching's inviting cross from the left, only for the teenager to send his downward header wide of target from a couple of yards out.

Oldham grew in stature and worked the ball from flank to flank with ease as the Shrimpers sat off, but they were unable to find a telling touch in the final third.

Garner nodded against the outside of the Shrimpers far post from a deep Pett corner kick before Harry Taylor was fortunate not to concede a penalty kick on 40 minutes when he slid into Fondop in the box without seeming to get any of the ball.

Fondop should have equalised moments later when he found himself in behind the Southend defence after a clearance was charged down, only to dink over the onrushing Nick Hayes but inches past the upright.

Less than a minute after the turnaround the Latics were handed a way back into the game as Reagan Ogle's long throw dropped to Monthe in the area, only for the big defender to go down under the challenge of Ben Goodliffe in the six-yard box.

Referee Elliot Bell pointed to the penalty spot allowing Garner the chance to coolly slot home, with Hayes diving the wrong way.

Just after the hour mark Fondop had another sight of goal as Corry Evans' skidding shot from 25 yards broke to him in the box, only for Hayes to fly to his left to turn away his low effort.

Keenan Appiah-Forson had appeals for a Shrimpers penalty waved away with just over 20 minutes to play, as Southend finished the 90 minutes the stronger, though Kitching came within a couple of feet of winning it for Oldham with a low strike during nine minutes of added time.

It took less than a minute of extra time for Southend to restore their lead when Appiah-Forson threaded Scott-Morriss through into the box and his looping cross was clawed off the line by Hudson but only for the lurking Chambers-Parillon to nod home at the far post.

Hudson stood firm at his near post to deny Macauley Bonne in the early stages of the second period of extra time, a save which was to prove crucial.

A long ball over the top allowed Norwood to get in behind Goodliffe and he kept his composure to nip past Hayes and slot the ball into the unguarded net.

Bedlam turned to pandemonium within two minutes as Harratt was found on the Latics right and he swung in a curling cross with his left foot which evaded the sliding Goodliffe and sailed inside the far post of the flat-footed Hayes.

The Shrimpers players hit the turf in despair but bounced back up to try and set up a grandstand finale, but the unfortunate Goodliffe missed his kick in the Oldham goalmouth after Nathan Ralph's low cross, and it was to be the last telling action of the contest.

Oldham finished fifth in the National League, five points and two places above the Shrimpers, but 29 points adrift of champions Barnet – a division record. It beats the gap set in 2016 when Grimsby Town were promoted 21 points adrift of champions Cheltenham Town.

The crowd of 52,115 at Wembley Stadium was over 5,000 more than the one which watched Grimsby beat Bristol Rovers that day, the previous record.