BURY boss David Flitcroft has set his side the target of breaking the club’s highest ever points tally for a season after they kept dreams of automatic promotion alive ahead of next weekend’s finale.

The Shakers moved to 82 points after goals from Tom Soares and Ryan Lowe sealed victory over AFC Wimbledon in their final home match on Saturday – a day after the club’s 130th anniversary.

But despite history being within their grasp, Flitcroft and his players could still have to settle for a place in the League Two play-offs.

Bury leapfrogged third-placed Wycombe following their 1-0 defeat at home to Morecambe, but only moved up to fourth in the table after a 1-0 win for 10-man Southend saw them jump into the top three.

Yet with one game remaining, the Bury manager is pleased to be going into Saturday’s match at relegated Tranmere with everything still to play for.

“I really wanted to get to that last day,” he said, after watching his side bounce back from a damaging 1-0 defeat at home to Southend in midweek.

“Next weekend we have got a fantastic opportunity to take care of our own business.

“We have concentrated on moving to 82 points, but I want 85 points. That would be the highest points total the club has ever gained and something I want to set as an objective.”

There was a feeling of 'after the Lord Mayor’s show' in the opening stages, following the disappointment of last Tuesday’s defeat.

Bury had destiny in their own hands before that game, which was played in front of a 16-year record crowd of nearly 8,400.

But they went into Saturday’s encounter two points adrift of both Southend and Wycombe, with their automatic promotion hopes hanging by a thread.

Even with a decent gate of 4,100, the ground seemed flat, and Wimbledon forward Sean Rigg did his best to capitalise, forcing Bury stopper Nick Pope into two decent saves inside the opening 10 minutes.

Pope dived low to his right to get a hand to a third-minute shot and then got his body in the way of a close-range effort in the eighth minute.

Rigg also wrestled his way past Bury full-back Joe Riley to cross on to the head of the sizeable frame of Adebayo Akinfenwa in the 16th minute, but the man known as “the Beast” headed over.

It took the home side 27 minutes to create their first real opening, captain Nathan Cameron heading a Chris Hussey corner just past the post.

Six minutes later they were in front as Soares glanced home a header, again from a Hussey corner, to take his tally for the season to seven goals – the 28-year-old midfielder’s best haul of his career.

Pope produced another superb save, swiftly switching direction to push an angled Rigg drive away from his near post at full stretch.

But Bury should have gone into the break 2-0 up after Danny Nardiello seized on Pope’s long punt upfield to lob the Wimbledon keeper, only to see his effort cannon back off the post.

Andrew Tutte, Danny Nardiello and second-half substitute Ryan Lowe all wasted opportunities to settle the nerves inside the JD Stadium after the break.

Tutte blazed a shot over 30 seconds into the second half, while Nardiello sent the ball flying high and wide with his left foot after space opened up in front of him on the edge of the box.

Lowe snatched at a shot on the turn after getting in behind the Wimbledon defence before glancing a header wide from a Nicky Adams cross.

But the veteran striker made no mistake from his third attempt on 79 minutes, clipping a Soares pass over onrushing Dons stopper James Shea to claim his third goal in four appearances.

It could have been the perfect finish had Southend not scored an 81st-minute winner, but Flitcroft was still satisfied with a job well done.

“It’s been an emotional week in terms of getting them back on track after the Southend game,” he said.

“I flushed out that disappointment with the players on Thursday.

“This was a massive game to get us towards our goal for next Saturday and the boys have overcome it fantastically well.

“For the opening 20 minutes we were a little disjointed but Popey - the two saves he has made were brilliant to keep us at a clean sheet.

“After scoring we controlled the game and have probably had six or seven chances to win this football match.”

The players went back out after the final whistle for a customary lap of honour in front of the supporters.

But time will tell if they will be returning on May 14 in the second game of the play-off semi-finals.

Flitcroft added: “English football is unique in its ability to throw up crazy results.

“The last day of the season can have an edge to it, can have a nervousness to it and an apprehension to it.

“So we will see what happens.”

BURY: Pope 8; Riley 7 (Adams 7 66), Cameron 8, El-Abd 7, Hussey 8; Jones 8, Etuhu 6 (Sedgwick 8 46), Tutte 8, Soares 9; Hope 7 (Lowe 8 59), Nardiello 7.

Not used: Rose, O'Brien, Lainton, Dudley.

AFC WIMBLEDON: Shea; Fuller, Goodman, Oshilaja; Francomb, Bulman, Reeves, Smith (Potter 71); Azeez (Tanner 65), Akinfenwa, Rigg.

Not used: Warner, Beere, Fitzpatrick, Sweeney, Gallagher.

Goals: Bury 2 (Soares 33, Lowe 79) AFC Wimbledon 0.

Yellow cards: Bury - none. AFC Wimbledon – Smith 27, Reeves 80.

Referee: Geoff Eltringham.

Attendance: 4,099 (312 visiting).

Star man: Tom Soares – It looked as though Bury may still have been feeling a little sorry for themselves in the opening stages of the game following last week’s morale-sapping defeat at home to Southend. If that was the case, Soares’ first-half header snapped them out of their malaise, and his pass to set up Ryan Lowe for the second goal ensured the Shakers would go to Tranmere with everything still to play for. Bury manager David Flitcroft has put his faith in the former Premier League midfielder and Soares has not let him down, turning in consistent displays in a number of different positions while also weighing in with seven goals – the highest season’s tally of his career.