Town were forced to settle for a share of the spoils after drawing 1-1 with Fleetwood Town at The County Ground earlier this afternoon.
Both sides were on target during the first-half with Luke Norris giving the Robins an early lead, but that was soon cancelled out by a David Ball strike.
Jermaine Hylton was a whisker away from restoring his side’s lead before the break, while Michael Doughty saw his spot-kick saved in the early throes of the second-half.
Town were handed a massive boost prior to kick-off with club captain Nathan Thompson fit enough to return to the Starting XI.
Yaser Kasim also made his return as the Reds lined up in a 3-5-2 formation with Jermaine Hylton and Luke Norris leading the line.
It was the visitors who started the brighter of the two teams as Chris Long fired an early shot over before Ashley Hunter sent a cross into the side netting.
But Town didn’t take long to find their groove and they took the lead with twelve minutes on the clock.
Jermaine Hylton displayed some determined work to hold off his man and hook the ball in the path of Darnell Furlong, and the defender’s pinpoint cross was headed home with aplomb by Luke Norris for his first league goal for Town.
The Reds were unable to hold onto that lead for long though and Fleetwood were level midway through the first-half courtesy of David Ball, who stroked home from Hunter’s low, driven cross.
The game settled down in the wake of that goal and both sides had a string of corners but were unable to make them count.
Hylton, who had looked lively in the first-half, latched onto a pass and, out of nothing, created an opening before sending an audacious effort inches wide.
Both sides had chances in the early exchanges of the second-half as Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill fired over after being teed up by Hylton, before Bobby Grant lashed over at the other end.
Town then had a golden opportunity to restore their lead after Hylton was brought down inside the area by Nathan Pond, but Michael Doughty’s penalty was superbly kept out by Alex Cairns.
The home side then went close again through Norris who pounced on a loose ball before turning his man and leathering a shot just over.
Sean Murray, who replaced Anton Rodgers at the interval, then tried his luck with a thunderous bullet which flew just wide.
Fleetwood went on the attack and were close to taking the lead but Grant’s deflected shot cannoned back off the bar and out to safety.
Ball then fired wide for the visitors and that proved to be the final meaningful action of the game with both sides having to settle for a point.
TEAMS AND STATS:
SCORERS - Luke Norris (12), David Ball (22).
TOWN - Vigouroux; Rossi-Branco, Thompson (C), Jones; Furlong, Rodgers (Sean Murray 45), Kasim, Doughty, Ormonde-Ottewill (Tom Smith 90); Hylton, Norris.
Subs Not Used - Henry, Thomas, Evans, Goddard, Delfouneso.
FLEETWOOD TOWN - Cairns; McLaughlin, Pond (C), Bolger, Bell; Glendon (Eggert Jonsson 88), Grant, Long (Victor Nirennold 55), Cole; Ball, Hunter (Alex Jakubiak 68).
Subs Not Used - Neal, Amadi-Holloway, Davis, Haughton.
Referee - Darren Deadman
BOOKINGS:
TOWN - Nathan Thompson, Raphael Rossi-Branco.
ATTENDANCE - 6,143 (56 Fleetwood Fans).
