Luton Town placed one foot in the Blue Square Bet Premier play-off final after a commanding away win in the first leg of their semi-final against Wrexham.
Alex Lawless struck first with a superb 35-yard low shot after striding forward unchallenged from the halfway line.
Claude Gnakpa smashed a second into the top corner from an acute angle, while Jake Howells hit the crossbar.
The third Hatters goal also came before half-time when Ed Asafu-Adjaye was unmarked on the far side from a corner.
Wrexham improved after the break but struggled to create shooting chances and it was not until the 81st minute that Curtis Obeng tested Luton goalkeeper Mark Tyler.
The night could have been worse for the Dragons had it not been for Chris Maxwell, who denied Keith Keane when the midfielder was through one-on-one with the Wrexham keeper and later pulled off a point-blank save to deflect defender Zdenek Kroca’s shot onto the post.
Thursday night’s reverse at the Racecourse Ground leaves Wrexham facing a huge task in next Tuesday’s second leg at Kenilworth Road, where Luton have lost just twice this season.
The second semi-final between AFC Wimbledon and Fleetwood Town gets underway on Friday night, with the prize a place in the play-off final at Manchester City’s Eastlands Stadium on 21 May.
BBC