Newport and MK Dons battled to a 0-0 draw after both sides missed a host of chances at Rodney Parade.

County striker Omar Bogle wasted several opportunities, but the closest either side came to opening the scoring in the first half was when Dons striker Max Dean forced Nick Townsend into a superb save after half an hour.

Townsend’s opposite number Craig MacGillivray presented Will Evans with a golden chance five minutes after the break, but the striker curled his shot wide.

Evans grazed the bar from a tight angle 16 minutes from time and, a minute later, Townsend was again the hero for the hosts as he denied Dons skipper Alex Gilbey from close range.

Newport defender Matt Baker blocked another goalbound effort from Conor Grant late on, before Townsend again saved his side as he held Joe Tomlinson’s shot at the second attempt.

Dons substitute Mo Eisa nearly found a winner a minute after coming off the bench, but he could not quite reach Gilbey’s dangerous ball across the goal as the match finished goalless.

Matthew Etherington praised Colchester’s reaction to half-time boos as they came from behind to win 3-1 at home to Swindon.

The hosts trailed at the break to a 23rd-minute strike from Jake Young, who netted with a low shot from the edge of the area from Frazer Blake-Tracy’s pass.

But they levelled in the 49th minute when Cameron McGeehan bundled the ball home from near the goal-line following Jayden Fevrier’s cross into the six-yard box.

And Colchester went ahead in the 64th minute when Samson Tovide fired home a first-time finish from Will Greenidge’s cross.

Noah Chilvers sealed the victory in the third minute of stoppage time when he latched on to fellow substitute Bradley Ihionvien’s pass and slotted past goalkeeper Murphy Mahoney.

Colchester interim boss Etherington said: “It was a good night’s work, in the end.

“Obviously the first half wasn’t good enough – the players knew that.

“We changed a bit of the structure in terms of the way we were in possession and I thought that helped.

“The first half wasn’t good enough in terms of not enough pressure on the ball and they could play at ease so that was disappointing.

“But the second half was really good and a really pleasing performance.

“There were a few boos at half-time and rightly so. We were poor and I’ve got no issue with that whatsoever, but the reaction was pleasing.

“The players knew that and I told them that as well.

“I’m more pleased for the players – I genuinely don’t care about myself.

“It’s good for the players at this football club that we have managed to give ourselves a little bit of breathing space now.”

Swindon boss Michael Flynn bemoaned his side’s naivety after they slumped to a fourth straight defeat in all competitions.

Flynn said: “We’re too easy to score against at the moment.

“We’ve let a lead slip five times this season.

“In the first half I thought we were very, very good and on the front foot, but we’ve got to be better in both boxes.

“For their first goal, the cross is too easy and he peels off too easily and we shot ourselves in the foot – we didn’t defend it right.

“We’ve got to be better in both boxes.

“Even when we were winning, playing well – look at the Wrexham game etc, Morecambe, Salford, Crewe and now here tonight, there’s the five games where we’ve thrown leads away.

“We need to be a lot more savvy, wise and the only way to do that is to keep working hard and together.

“The effort and the commitment was there tonight, but we were very, very naive and we dropped too deep.”

Colchester registered a third successive League Two win after coming from behind to beat Swindon Town 3-1 at the JobServe Community Stadium.

Swindon wasted a great chance midway through the first half when Charlie Austin sent a free header wide from 10 yards with the goal gaping.

But the Robins were ahead in the 23rd minute when Jake Young fired home a low shot from the edge of the area after being picked out by Frazer Blake-Tracy.

Colchester levelled in the 49th minute when Cameron McGeehan bundled the ball home from near the goal-line under pressure from Liam Kinsella following Jayden Fevrier’s cross into the six-yard box.

Young sliced a shot wide from close range from Tyrese Shade’s pass for Swindon, but Colchester went ahead in the 64th minute when Samson Tovide fired home a first-time finish from Will Greenidge’s cross.

And Noah Chilvers sealed victory in the third minute of stoppage time when he latched on to fellow substitute Bradley Ihionvien’s pass and slotted past goalkeeper Murphy Mahoney.

Aldershot manager Tommy Widdrington admitted even he was shocked as the National League side thrashed League Two Swindon 7-4.

Jack Barham scored a hat-trick to lead the non-leaguers to a famous giant-killing at the County Ground.

Widdrington said: “It was barmy, it was a bit of an unreal situation.

“I was probably the only person supporting Aldershot who didn’t celebrate the first goal because I have done that before and it has really kicked me in the backside.

“We have been 2-0 up at half-time in games before and not gone on to win, so we knew we had to give Swindon the utmost respect in the game.

“I have nothing but praise for the lads and the people that have come to this game in their hundreds.

“I am delighted for them as I am aware they have had some hard times of late and this is something to remember, it is a scoreline that you can’t ignore.

“The players are fully deserving of today because they work so hard.”

Aldershot got off to the perfect start as before 60 seconds were up Josh Stokes teed up Barham to tuck home the opener.

The Shots were in dreamland two minutes later as Murphy Mahoney was
caught on the ball in the corner by Barham and he turned and chipped
the ball into the unguarded net.

Swindon were three goals down inside 10 minutes as Barham turned
creator as he got in behind and found Lorent Tolaj, who had an easy
pass to Stokes to turn home.

Tolaj scored twice either side of the break, with the second
being a screamer from outside the area, either side of a cool Cian
Harries penalty.

Barham completed his hat-trick with a close-range header before Dan
Kemp pulled a pair of goals back with two fabulous strikes from the
edge of the area before Charlie Austin scored twice in stoppage time.

Swindon boss Michael Flynn said that his players need to take a long look in the mirror.

Flynn said: “I didn’t see that coming, we have given away some sloppy
goals this season and some bad positions, but nothing like that.

“I think that there are two players who can hold their heads up. Just.
The others were nowhere near good enough.

“No one wants to take some responsibility, everybody is looking at
someone else and I need some characters in to change that, and I will
be doing it.

“We are light on the ground but that is no excuse for what happened
there, because that had nothing to do with the players that are
missing.

“Those players out there were predominantly the ones who went on a
nine-game unbeaten run at the start of the season.”

Barrow have called for life bans after an alleged incident of racist abuse during Tuesday’s win over Morecambe.

Dom Telford’s first-half goal settled the match but the main issue occurred off the pitch and was addressed by both clubs after the final whistle.

A statement on Barrow’s website read: “We are aware of an allegation of racist abuse being directed at a Barrow AFC staff member during Tuesday evening’s Sky Bet League Two fixture at The So Legal Stadium.

“The club would like to make it absolutely clear that we abhor discrimination in all its forms and will take the strongest action possible, including pursuing life bans, for anyone found guilty of racism.

“We will be conducting a thorough investigation and would appeal to any fans who may have witnessed any discriminatory abuse to please come forward.

“We would like to thank Barrow AFC stewards and Barrow police for their swift actions in identifying the individual.”

Morecambe added: “We are aware of an incident that has taken place at this evening’s match with Barrow.

“Until full details and understanding of the incident have been made clear, the club will not be making any further comment at this time.

“Morecambe FC stands against all forms of discrimination.”

The PA news agency has contacted Cumbria Police for comment.

Regarding the match itself, Barrow manager Pete Wild described Telford’s finishing as “a real art” as Barrow moved up to eighth in the table.

Telford had another second-half effort cleared off the line and Wild said: “Dom is between the sticks and that’s where good centre-forwards are.

“You look at the quality of his finish. He passed it into the net.

“Sometimes players can lash at it but Dom has the quality to pass it in. That is a real art and a real skill.”

Morecambe were 3-1 winners over Barrow in the EFL Trophy earlier this month during a run of five straight wins.

“They have been great across the last games I have watched,” added Wild.

“They are industrious and have got some good young players. But I don’t think anyone has gone to war like we did.

“That is the first thing we said because they have gone to war with everybody else.

“To a man we made it very difficult for them. It was an industrious team performance.”

The Shrimps lost for the first time in nine outings as boss Derek Adams saw his team miss a chance to go second in the table.

“A draw would have been fair,” he insisted. “I can’t say any team deserved to win the game. We certainly didn’t and I don’t think Barrow did.

“Over the 90 minutes it wasn’t a classic football match. They had two attempts on target, we had one attempt on target. One of theirs has gone in.

“We didn’t do well with the long ball and win the header. We don’t win the second ball and it goes into the back of the net.

“That’s the only thing that won them the game.

“We worked hard but didn’t find solutions to the problem. We couldn’t find any rhythm but that’s probably credit to Barrow because they made it that type of game.”

Dom Telford ended Morecambe’s eight-game unbeaten record and Barrow’s recent home goal drought to give the Cumbrians a 1-0 victory in Sky Bet League Two.

Telford’s goal after 29 minutes lifted Pete Wild’s side up to eighth and denied the Shrimps chance to move second behind leaders Stockport.

Barrow had failed to find the net in their previous two appearances at Holker Street, forcing manager Wild to ask the fans for patience.

That was rewarded when Telford seized on Emile Acquah’s header to break the deadlock.

Morecambe were lucky to keep 11 men on the pitch when Joel Senior, previously booked by referee Benjamin Speedie, escaped another caution for a foul on Elliot Newby.

Senior was substituted at the break, with Barrow doubling their lead on the restart. Acquah’s shot was blocked by keeper Adam Smith before Telford’s follow-up was hooked off the line by Shrimps skipper Farrend Rawson.

Morecambe were chasing a fourth successive away win but never came close as Paul Farman did not have a shot to save.

Crewe boss Lee Bell appeared to point the finger at Harrogate following a freak injury to matchwinner Zac Williams, who tripped over a frost sheet.

Williams’ 31st-minute header secured a 1-0 win for Alex but he limped out of the action at the end of the first half after falling over and twisting his ankle.

It was an incident that Bell thought could have been avoided, arguing that the sheets had been deliberately positioned to combat Mickey Demetriou’s long throw, which proved the source of Williams’ goal.

“They put the frost sheets down because of Mickey’s throw-in, which we ended up scoring the winner from anyway,” the Crewe chief claimed. “I spotted them when we went out and moved them because they were too close to the touchline and we said that somebody would trip over or crash into them.

“As it happened, Zac went over them and twisted his ankle going to get the ball, so it was a freak accident but one I think could have been avoided.”

Bell was pleased, however, with his team’s first back-to-back away wins since August 2021, adding: “Our away form is getting better and it couldn’t have got much worse, let’s be honest. But we have a percentage of points we want to pick up away from home to make sure we progress in the league and we’re on track to achieving that.

“It was a fantastic win off the back of our first home defeat for a long time. Harrogate were also coming off the back of a heavy loss, so it was all about two teams looking for a reaction and I thought we were really professional throughout and controlled large periods.”

Harrogate boss Simon Weaver watched his team slump to a fifth straight home defeat – the club’s worst sequence since 2010.

He felt there were signs of improvement but admitted that Williams’ goal was “really poor” from a defensive perspective.

“We’ve been through their goal on the video and I think we made honest mistakes, because a number of players went for the same ball,” Weaver pointed out. “They wanted to do the right thing but they got in each other’s way and it was a bit of carnage in there, so it ended up being a really poor goal to concede.

“Overall, I’m a little bit down about the result, but I thought the performance was a lot better, especially in the second half when we were more aggressive in our approach and caused them problems by playing with energy in their half. We could have maybe cranked up the intensity a bit more in the last 10 minutes and gone a bit more direct.

“That might have got us a scruffy goal, but we were, at least, asking a few more questions than in the first half. The next step now is to get that home win.”

New boss Mike Williamson hailed the “desire and togetherness” of his MK Dons side after they made it back-to-back wins with a 3-2 League Two success at home to Swindon.

Williamson’s first game in charge ended in defeat at Accrington last weekend but consecutive home victories have followed under the former Gateshead manager.

Max Dean, Warren O’Hora and George McEachran’s own goal were to thank against the Robins, leaving Williamson pleased with how his squad are performing in the early days of his reign.

“I’m happy with the result, obviously,” he said.

“I feel a similar kind of feeling that it was the lads’ raw talent, desire and togetherness that I can see that’s got this win.

“There are a lot of things we can see we can improve and work on, but two wins on the bounce is fantastic.

“When we concede, it is difficult but there’s so much work we’ve got to get into on the training ground.

“There are so many elements of the game in and out of possession and we keep reflecting on the fact the talent, raw desire and determination to fight and win and pick up second balls has carried us through.

“Hopefully when we get a few more hours on the training field, we can start to see a little more structure and detail.”

Dean was denied twice by Murphy Mahoney early on as the hosts started strongly and the former Leeds striker scored on his third attempt when he received Conor Grant’s pass and placed the ball home.

Swindon levelled just before the hour as Jake Young received McEachran’s pass and lashed a strike past Craig MacGillivray from the edge of the box.

But Dons went back in front seven minutes later, as Jack Payne and O’Hora combined for the latter to curl a shot home.

Mahoney was beaten again when an Alex Gilbey cross went in off McEachran, meaning Frazer Blake-Tracy firing home an injury-time free-kick to reduce the arrears was merely a consolation.

Swindon boss Michael Flynn said: “I’m not going to dress it up, it was flat and I don’t want to see many more like that.

“I’ve tried to change it today to freshen it up and maybe I’ve got to look at myself as well. But it led into them giving too much respect to MK Dons, first half.

“When the game went on, we made an early sub to get more pace and put Youngy on and it worked. We looked better, but again, we’ve gone and shot ourselves in the foot by giving away two poor goals.

“It’s not going to get any easier at the minute. We’ve just got to buckle down and stay in touching distance by January and add some quality to improve the squad, not just in numbers but quality-wise.”

Grimsby’s owners want to go in a new direction after a 1-0 defeat at Doncaster ended Paul Hurst’s second stint in charge.

Hurst found the price for a five-game winless league run was his job, with the Mariners four points above the League Two drop zone.

Hurst got them into the league in 2022, as he did in 2016, but chairman Jason Stockwood said change was needed.

“It is with sadness and disappointment that we’ve reached this point. Since May 2021, we’ve had a positive relationship with Paul and Chris [Doig, assistant manager],” he said.

“We’re proud of our achievements under their leadership: our promotion from the National League, the historic FA Cup run, and attaining our highest league position in 17 years. However, it’s time to embark on the next phase of the club’s development.

“We’re grateful for their hard work and wish them future success. They are an indelible part of our history and will always be welcome at Blundell Park.”

Classroom time paid off for the Doncaster rearguard as they returned to winning ways.

Manager Grant McCann had been critical of his side’s defensive performance in the 3-0 defeat to Salford earlier in the week.

But he was full of praise for his back line as they shut out Grimsby in a scrappy game at the Eco-Power Stadium.

“It’s a credit to the players,” he said. “We conceded three goals on Tuesday night but over the last few days we’ve worked hard with the back five and the goalkeeper.

“We’ve watched back goals that we’ve conceded and talked about why we’ve conceded them. Are we moving quick enough when balls come back? And we’ve put some work in on the training ground.

“I’m pleased to see it come to fruition and it gives us something to build on. We feel we’ve got players in the team that can hurt people, if we can keep those clean sheets.

“It was important for us to get the win and bounce back from the disappointing defeat.

“We were poor in possession. When you are like that, you’ve got to stay strong defensively and you’ve got to find a way to win and we did that.”

The victory was Doncaster’s sixth from nine League Two matches and was secured with a 72nd-minute penalty from Joe Ironside after substitute Kyle Hurst was brought down in the box by Gavan Holohan.

There had been little between the two sides for the majority of the game, with Harry Clifton missing an early headed chance to put Grimsby in front.

McCann said: “I’m really pleased with the commitment the lads showed and the substitutes made a massive impact.

“It wasn’t pretty but we got the three points and that was the main thing.”

Graham Coughlan paid tribute to Omar Bogle as his two penalties helped Newport to a 2-0 win over Gillingham at Priestfield, while the Welsh club said they were “extremely disappointed” after a Gills supporter appeared to make a racist gesture towards the striker as he celebrated.

The County forward found the net twice in the space of seven first-half minutes, and appeared to be racially abused by a Gillingham supporter after the first goal – with the fan promptly issued a lifetime ban, according to Gills director of operations Joe Comper.

And Newport boss Coughlan, a central defender in his day, gave Bogle the ultimate compliment after the win.

He said: “He was a real handful all afternoon, which we know he’s got in his locker. He worked his socks off. As a centre-half, I wouldn’t have enjoyed playing against him when he’s in that form. I just had a little nibble at him inside as I thought he should have got a hat-trick.

“He had a couple of chances to do so and that’s the ruthlessness that I’m after. I could have rested a bit easier on the sidelines if we’d have got another one!

“I thought we were magnificent. I’m really proud of the way they managed the game. Let’s be honest – it is a big, big win for us. We really needed that.”

On the supporter incident, he added: “It has no place in the game. But, I’ve got to say that, having competed against Gillingham for years, I don’t think that’s representative of this football club. It’s a minority and these people don’t represent the club or the fans.”

A statement on Newport’s website read: “Newport County is extremely disappointed with the racist gesture made to striker Omar Bogle by a Gillingham supporter during today’s League Two fixture at Priestfield Stadium.

“Newport County abhors any forms of racism, prejudice or discrimination and has a zero-tolerance policy towards incidence of such nature.

“The EFL have confirmed that the individual has been identified and arrested.”

Anti-discrimination body Kick It Out wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “We are aware of the disgusting abuse from a fan directed towards Newport forward Omar Bogle during Saturday’s League Two match at Gillingham.

“There is absolutely no room for so-called supporters like this in football and offences such as this should be met with the strongest possible punishments.

“We send our support to Omar and remind fans that discriminatory behaviour will not be tolerated. If you see it or hear it, report it.”

Bogle opened the scoring when he was fouled by Gills keeper Jake Turner after a careless back pass from Cheye Alexander.

And he doubled the advantage, making no mistake again from the spot, when Alexander was at fault once more, this time bundling over Matty Bondswell, leaving Gills interim boss Keith Millen particularly frustrated.

He said: “It’s a tough one to get my head around. I wasn’t expecting that performance or the result. It’s difficult to digest, especially off the back of the last two performances.

“They changed their shape, which threw us a little, as they’ve never done that before and we did a lot of work on how they normally set up. But we played against a 5-3-2 on Tuesday, so it’s not rocket science. We didn’t get to grips with it and we didn’t really look like creating chances.

“When you look at the two penalties and the build-up to them, we should have played forward instead of going for a back pass for the first, then we gave the ball away for the second and they punished us.”

On the supporter incident, he added: “It’s disgusting. It’s not acceptable. As a club we don’t accept it, it’s wrong. It involved one person in a crowd, and thankfully the club have identified him and acted quickly. I feel sorry for the rest of the Gillingham fans as there are a lot of really good supporters here.”

Pete Wild cannot understand Barrow fans’ frustration at seeing their side play out a second successive home stalemate.

And the Cumbrians boss believed only the lack of a goal failed to deliver the perfect game plan.

Barrow, unbeaten at home in the league this season and with the second meanest defence in the fourth tier, went closest when Dom Telford struck a post in the first half.

The Ammies also survived a frantic second-half free-kick on the edge of their six-yard box after goalkeeper Alex Cairns saved a back pass from Elliot Watt.

Substitute Matty Lund might have won it for the visitors but failed to convert Declan John’s cross.

“I know fans might be frustrated but I don’t know why,” said Wild. “The season is going exactly to plan.

“Let’s have it right, we played a team who will be up there at the end of the season, a team who were a penalty shoot-out from getting to Wembley last season.

“If you had said after 15 games we would have 22 points and still be unbeaten at home and well-placed in the league I would have snapped your hand off.

“We are not one of the big guns in this league, we’ve got to fight for every point.

“So, to be where we are and having a real identity, I’m over the moon.

“They have three big threats in Elliot Watt, Luke Bolton and Matt Smith. We nullified all three of their threats.

“So, did our game plan work? Yes. Did we have lots of domination of the ball and stop them hurting us? Yes.

“And we had opportunities but couldn’t put them away.

“Smith has played in the Championship and is an outstanding striker. But George Ray went to war with him and clearly won.”

Salford manager Neil Wood said: “We always want to win but this is a tough place to come.

“You know it’s going to be a battle, so you are looking for the fine margins to get you over the line.

“We will take the point and another clean sheet which are positives.”

On the free-kick, Wood added: “It was self-inflicted and we have a good habit of doing that.

“We are in total control and playing in good spaces but we just invite pressure and bring a mistake on us when we don’t have to.

“But we will take the positives. We thought it would be settled by fine margins and we just couldn’t quite get it.”

Forest Green head coach David Horseman praised his side’s “incredible character” as they claimed a precious 2-1 comeback win over Crawley.

A Callum Morton double cancelled out Ronan Darcy’s opener to give Rovers only a second home win of the season.

The hosts had James Belshaw to thank for a string of fine saves to help Forest Green to all three points.

“Today we were more clinical and we made bigger blocks and saves that we haven’t been doing of late. Today was about three points because we need to move up the table,” said Horseman.

Crawley led when a short corner routine found Darcy in acres of space before he drove a low effort that hammered in off the post on seven minutes.

Nick Tsaroulla came inches away from a second when he connected with a one-two before his powerful strike was parried by Belshaw in the Rovers net.

Klaidi Lolos should have added to the lead but his point-blank range effort was saved by Belshaw’s feet before Jay Williams headed over.

Rovers found a leveller on 27 minutes when the impressive Morton shifted a yard of space in the penalty area and fired under Town goalkeeper Corey Addai.

Morton doubled his tally seconds before the break when ran onto a Kyle McAllister flick-on and calmly slotted home to give Rovers a first-half lead.

Belshaw’s reactions were tested again when Lolos’ deflected effort from six yards out was superbly denied by the Rovers goalkeeper.

Troy Deeney’s lofted pass over Crawley’s defence found Jamie Robson in space but his effort was turned away by Addai.

“At 1-0, it got a little angry around the place,” said Horseman. “The players showed incredible character to come back so I’m really proud of the players, squad, and the staff for sticking together because it is tough times at the moment.

“People have asked me whether it’s toxic in the dressing room but they’ve seen the performances are good. We’ve got a brilliant dressing room – they need to believe in themselves more.”

On Morton’s performance, he said: “I’m delighted for him. The most goals he’s scored in a season is 10 so I want us to help him smash that record. It took some convincing to get him here but people can probably see today why we worked so hard to do it.”

Opposition boss Scott Lindsey said: “Frustration is a word I’d use. We scored a good goal, got ourselves in front, and then gifted the first goal.

“We then let them in with a straight ball down the middle. In my opinion, we gifted them two goals, and in the second half it became hard.

“Forest Green didn’t beat us today, we beat ourselves and that’s the most disappointing thing.”

Morecambe boss Derek Adams praised Michael Mellon after the young striker’s second-half hat-trick fired the Shrimps to a 4-2 win over AFC Wimbledon.

The on loan Burnley forward, and son of Oldham boss Micky Mellon, picked up his first English Football League hat-trick with a clinical performance in front of goal to down the Dons.

Adams said: “Michael is prolific and really can score goals. He did ever so well to get his hat-trick and it was a very good performance from him today.

“He was always in and around the 18-yard box and getting in on the end of crosses and when you have a player like that in good form it always gives you a chance.”

Morecambe have moved into the League Two play-off places after a fourth straight win and they are unbeaten in the competition since September 16.

The Shrimps sit three points off the automatic promotion places and eight behind leaders Stockport having played two fewer games than all of the top three.

Adams added: “We have put ourselves into a good position with games in hand and I’m really pleased with the way we played.

“We have had to make quite a few changes in recent weeks with injuries and suspensions but everyone who has come in has done a good job and there is real competition for places all over the field.”

Wimbledon boss Johnnie Jackson was at a loss to explain his side’s capitulation after the break as their winless run was extended to five matches.

He said: “It is difficult to explain the difference from the first half to the first 20 minutes of the second half.

“We did everything we wanted to do apart from score in the first half.

“The football was as good as it has been all season and we were in complete control of the game and we should have been two up.

“At the break we told them to keep doing the same stuff and the goals would come. And within 30 seconds of the restart we are a goal down.

“We lost our way and our composure for 15 minutes and went individual and you can’t have success like that.”

Mansfield boss Nigel Clough admitted the 2-1 League Two home win over battling Walsall had been the toughest and most pleasing of what is now a sensational 19-game unbeaten run in all competitions from the start of the season.

Aden Flint’s 16th-minute opener was cancelled out by Ryan Stirk’s 52nd-minute equaliser on his return to his old club before Jordan Bowery scuffed a 71st-minute winner, amid a string of missed chances for the home side.

On the run, Clough said: “It is absolutely incredible and I am delighted with it.

“Games like today are very important ones to win and it was probably the most hard-fought we’ve had out of the 19 games. It feels as good as any of the results we’ve had this season.

“We should have been out of sight again. We have to convert a bigger proportion of the chances we’re creating. We had plenty today and only scored two goals.

“Walsall are a very genuine side and you know they will cause you some problems at some stage in the game and for 10 to 15 minutes after their goal, they did.

“They came back from behind three times at Newport recently. They never give up and we never felt comfortable until the final whistle.”

Stags went ahead from a George Maris corner. Flint’s far-post header was kept out by a combination of goalkeeper and crossbar and Davis Keillor-Dunn’s follow-up was blocked before Flint fired home from close range.

But Walsall levelled from their first shot on target as Tom Knowles got down the right and crossed low for Stirk to bury.

Mansfield continued to create chance after chance and won it when Will Swan’s cross was met by a scuffed Bowery volley which went in off the far post.

Walsall boss Mat Sadler said: “There was plenty there for me to be pleased with but we are frustrated to end up on the wrong side of the result.

“We knew they would be a threat from set plays. Aden Flint is a big old lump and he is fantastic in the air. He has done that time and time again and we were unable to stop him – which gave them that momentum.

“The winner was a very stuffy goal to concede. It was frustrating as I thought we were on top in the second half. Nothing really dropped for us.

“We came out really well. We switched to a 4-3-3 just before half-time and it that seemed to alter the momentum of the game and got us back on the front foot.

“I think we have a really good group and the makings of a team that can be very good in this division. We need to get some bodies back and improve things in January.”

Matt Gray hailed his Sutton side’s character after overseeing a late 2-1 win over managerless Bradford.

Josh Coley put the hosts ahead after four minutes before Andy Cook levelled just before the hour mark.

And after weathering a Bantams storm, Harry Beautyman won it in the 87th minute with his first Sky Bet League Two goal since the opening day.

Victory ended a three-game losing streak for the EFL’s bottom club.

Gray said: “We’re delighted to win. I thought the other two performances over the past seven days were better.

“But I can’t fault the shift or the effort one bit. We pulled into this car park at 3.30am on Wednesday morning, so to go out, stick together, dig in and show great character I’m really pleased.

“We rode our luck to be fair. I think we needed that little bit of luck with Cooky hitting the bar at a crucial time.

“We just weathered the storm and came out after their goal and I was delighted for Harry to get the goal.

“We got off to a really good start, we were on the front foot and it was a really good, calm finish.

“I was really pleased with our play for 20 or 25 minutes, but it was a half of two halves really.

“It was disappointing to concede from a corner, but we stuck together. We grew back into the half.

“It was a great cross and a great header from Harry to win it.”

Bantams caretaker player-manager Kevin McDonald saw his side slump to a painful second successive away defeat.

He said: “We were poor in the first half. We didn’t create enough chances or play with enough pace in our attack.

“We gave it away sloppily in the final third at times and we deserved to go in at half-time 1-0 down.

“We tweaked a couple of things that we knew would give us joy and it did.

“Unfortunately, we’re on top and create a few good chances to win the game. But that seems to be the case, we don’t seem to be scoring too many goals at the minute.

“Then we concede a suckerpunch at the end there and that’s a blow.

“We needed to score when we were on top. When you’re dominating, creating chances and are on the attack you have to score, but that’s not happened for a good few weeks.

“We need to score goals; it’s not the individuals but we need to score.

“At 1-1 we’re in the ascendency and if we score we win that game and then it turns into a difficult result.”