It was a dramatic conclusion to the game, a worthy end to an afternoon which had seen the game swing from side to side between these two play-off hopefuls but ultimately resting with the home team, whose manager Lawrie Sanchez was delighted with the win, having been forced to play some inexperienced youngsters after injury coursed through his squad.

For Bury though, a costly lapse in concentration late on was to blame for a sixth defeat in seven matches, despite this being their best performance to date since that run began in mid-October - they looked likely to win the game for long periods before Chris Billy lazily lost posession in the Wanderers half, and within seconds Bates had secured the three points with his second goal of the match.

Nine minutes beforehand and there had been jubilation for the visitors as the Shakers were awarded a penalty, as Alan Beeton was suprisingly adjudged not only to have upended a surging Chris Billy, whose reaction was somewhat exaggerated, but also to have committed the offence inside the box - a spot kick for the Shakers which Paul Reid dispatched with glee into the top corner beyond Taylor to level the match.

However Taylor had enjoyed the upper hand for most of the game beforehand and continued to do so after conceding, winning all the aerial battles in his area and also producing some excellent saves to deny Bury. It was actually Reid who played a part in one of the highlights of the first half, as he drilled a right foot volley towards the bottom corner only for Taylor to block with a one handed diving save.

Then Nick Daws scooped a routine finish just over from inside the box with Taylor beaten as Bury looked set to take the lead. A halftime stalemate was only preserved though by the woodwork as Jason Cousins directed a corner onto the foot of the post with a flick header. It would be set-piece too which brought the game's first goal, yet it was no classic as Jamie Bates scored his first of the afternoon with a low, driven effort from twenty yards out which evaded the Shakers' wall and 'keeper Kenny.

Shakers Team: Patrick Kenny, Chris Swailes, Steve Redmond, Sam Collins, Lee Unsworth, Chris Billy, Paul Reid, Nick Daws, Adrian Littlejohn, Baichung Bhutia, Paul Barnes.