Stevenage 0
Fleetwood Town 0
League (League One)

Match report written by Neil Metcalfe, The Comet

Points make prizes at this stage of the season but Stevenage may see this as a missed opportunity to fill their boots.

They drew 0-0 at home to Fleetwood Town despite having by far the most possession and playing the final 22 minutes of normal time against 10 men.

They still remain in the League One play-off places but with Oxford United and Lincoln City winning below them, and Blackpool drawing at Portsmouth, the lack of a Lamex win was a disappointment.

Steve Evans went for two changes from the side that gained a gritty 0-0 draw away to Lincoln City last week.

In came Harvey White and Kane Hemmings with Alex MacDonald and Jake Forster-Caskey making way, the latter missing out altogether.

Fans had arrived in good sunshine and with a bit of warmth in the air but by the time kick-off came round, the clouds had rolled in and the wind had picked up.

The breeze was coming across the pitch and that, coupled with Fleetwood's happiness to stay solid at the back, meant it was a turgid half of football.

Stevenage take some responsibility for that. They had copious amounts of possession but seemed to lack any sort of know-how as to how to break the visitors down.

Reid had the one big chance just before half-time, getting onto a knockdown from Carl Piergianni but instead of sweeping it home, like he would have done earlier in the season, he snatched at it and it rolled harmlessly through to Jay Lynch.

But it was a poor half, too many little niggly fouls and too much whistling from the referee.

The biggest take away was that if Stevenage upped their game, even into a second gear, they would reap the rewards.

They made two changes at the break to try and spark that into life, White and Finley Burns coming off for newly crowned player of the month Nick Freeman and Nesta Guinness-Walker.

Within the opening 60 seconds of the half, things were already more promising.

Luther Wildin picked the ball up on the right and fired a drive in that Lynch had to push away diving to his right.

A few minutes later Taye Ashby-Hammond made an even better stop, and an improvised one as well.

The ball was tight on the byline but fizzed across with a bit of bend. The keeper, who had been expecting a standard cross, suddenly had to fling himself towards his own goal and push the ball onto the bar before his mates cleared the danger.

The visitors were coming out of their shell more in the second period, Gavin Kilkenny firing a long-distance effort well over the top,

It was still the home side doing more off the attacking though and they were given a huge boost when Harrison Holgate picked up a second yellow card, both bookings without question.

Dan Butler drilled a free-kick in but Lynch tipped it away before finally put the ball in the net.

However, Reid's effort, turning in a low Guinness-Walker cross, was instantly ruled out by an offside flag.

It proved to be the crucial moment as despite huff and puff, too many times the ball went sideways as Fleetwood shut the middle down.