Mansfield Town produced their second successive comeback with goals from Nicky Maynard and Danny Rose earning a 2-2 draw against Morecambe.
The visiting side took a two-goal advantage within 21 minutes after Sam Lavelle and Lewis Alessandra made their mark.
Although, the Stags were not to be deterred as a strike in either half from Maynard and Rose rescued a point at One Call Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Stags’ boss John Dempster opted to begin with the same XI that staged a spectacular, second-half fightback at Rodney Parade last week.
Kellan Gordon and Otis Khan came in for Ryan Sweeney and Jacob Mellis, with the latter suspended after picking up a red card against Newport.
Mansfield made a fast start as Otis Khan took aim from the edge of the box, however, it instead was the visitors who struck early.
After a deflected, long-distance strike in the fifth minute, Morecambe were able to recycle possession and profit from space at the back post.
Lavelle had crept round to plant a firm header in the back of Conrad Logan’s net and give his side the advantage.
Dempster urged his men to search for an instant response – one that almost arrived moments later.
Danny Rose showcased his penchant for winning headers with a deft flick that set Maynard free; only for the striker to be denied by a combination of two Morecambe defenders.
Then, Matt Preston tried to angle a header towards goal but was unable to rotate his body far enough.
And on 21 minutes, the visiting side notched their second.
Kevin Ellison drilled a superb pass towards Alessandra whose header looped beyond Logan and gave his side room to breathe.
Much like in south Wales last Saturday, there was another fightback needed from the Stags.
And the contest burst into life six minutes from the break.
The ball landed at the feet of Alex MacDonald and, despite his effort being palmed away by ‘keeper Barry Roche, it trickled towards Maynard who halved the deficit with a simple finish.
Decibel levels rose significantly inside One Call Stadium and almost climbed higher when Maynard looked in for his brace.
A defence-splitting pass made its way to the number 11 but Roche had hurried away from his post to deny the striker with a fine, fingertip save.
Mansfield trailed at the break by a solitary goal as they looked to overturn the scoreline in the second period.
The Stags picked up where they left off, with Maynard forcing a timely block, before Krystian Pearce directed a header agonisingly over the bar.
Neal Bishop then watched his own header wide as Mansfield seemed to be creeping closer to the desired equaliser.
The midfielder, soon after, slid through Khan but the eventual cutback was hooked clear by Luke Conlan.
The hosts edged ever closer when Gordon’s teasing delivery would have surely resulted in another goal for Rose had it not been for a last-ditch clearance by Lavelle.
And despite Morecambe striking the upright, giving heart-in-mouth moments for all in amber and blue, the Stags’ pressure told.
In the 72nd minute, MacDonald’s phenomenal cross was met by Rose who powered a header into the far side and restore parity to the delight of the home crowd.
Pressure continued to mount against the Shrimps’ backline as Rose sought to take matters into his own hands.
Both a close-range header and attempt from outside the area fell wide of the mark with just ten minutes remaining.
However, for all of Mansfield’s positive work, they were dealt a huge blow seven minutes from time.
Preston was shown a straight red card for a sliding challenge on Alessandra that meant they would search for a winner with one less man.
Andy Cook was introduced in the latter stages and he was soon left disappointed after he saw his strong penalty appeal waved away in added time.
Mansfield were forced to settle for a point despite dominating large parts of the second half, but will look to exact revenge when they again face Morecambe in the Carabao Cup this forthcoming Tuesday.
STAGS' XI: Logan (GK), Benning, Preston, Pearce ©, Bishop, MacDonald, Khan, Maynard (Sweeney 84’), Gordon, Hamilton, Rose (Cook 88’).
UNUSED SUBS: Stone (GK), White, Donohue, Sterling-James, Smith.
MORECAMBE XI: Roche (GK) ©, Buxton, Conlan, Old, Tutte (Kenyon 76’), O’Sullivan (Cranston 67’), Alessandra, Stockton (Miller 76’), Ellison, Wildig, Lavelle.
UNUSED SUBS: Halstead (GK), Sutton, Oates, Brownsword.
REFEREE: Chris Pollard
ASSISTANTS: Paul Graham & Gary Hilton
FOURTH OFIFICIAL: Joe Simpson
ATTENDANCE: 4,465 (110 away)
