They used to call them game-changers in these parts and Callum McManaman and George Moncur turned the clock back to come off the bench and steal a late, late victory from the jaws of defeat against Wigan.
How football can turn in an instant, because until the 87th minute Town were cruising to a crushing defeat in a must-win game against their fellow strugglers. Now they’re four points clear.
They’d wasted two big first half chances and had one cleared off the line only for Kieffer Moore to bag a towering header with the visitors’ first shot on target.
For almost an hour that looked the decisive moment that would put Luton in deep, deep trouble. And, for a time, Town had slumped into the bottom three.
But then McManaman swung, missed but flicked out a foot at the second time of asking, poking in against his former side. Still that did not hint at the delirium that was to follow.
Town fans had been calling for the introduction of Moncur for months, with his last outing coming in September. He who made himself a folk hero with that last-gasp winner against Portsmouth last term, popped up with a goal that meant every bit as much.
First, Chey Dunkley fouled Harry Cornick to see red in injury time and Moncur smashed the promising free-kick on the edge off the area into the Wigan wall. But there was still time for one last chance and the ball fell loose to where the midfielder smashed beyond keeper Jamie Jones.
There was no mega knee slide this time, as in the snow against Pompey, but this was perhaps an even bigger moment as Moncur instead sped off around the pitch, whipping off his shirt soaking in the adulation.
There was the slightly bizarre scenario of Wigan having to wait for the Hatters hero to trudge deep into their half to pick up his jersey and receive his mandatory yellow card. There won’t be a more well-received one this side of Christmas.
Kenilworth Road didn’t care because a hero had done it again.
