Both sides played attacking football but it was the Spireites who might have taken the lead after David Reeves had a solid call for a penalty dismissed after he had been pulled down in the Town area by Kevin Gray in the 22nd minute.

Both sides had periods of dominance but Town had the more credible chances on goal from Danny Schofield and Andy Booth.

Schofield appeared to revel in the space afforded to him as defenders flocked towards the ever dangerous John Thorrington in an effort to mark him out of the game.

Thorrington wasn't the only outlet for Town attacks, though, and Holland, Irons and Mattis contributed to the overall Terriers performance.

The Town attacks were incisive and Dwayne Mattis might have broken the deadlock in the 85th minute when, in the middle of a Town siege on the Chesterfield area, the Town youngster was given the ball in space but he blasted his effort off the bar from the edge of the box.

For Chesterfield Luke Beckett was a danger man and his attacks had to be watched closely by Nathan Clarke and Kevin Gray who looked comfortable in defence.

Referee Scott Mathieson was lenient all night and tended to play-on rather than break up play and the result was an entertaining match even if the result wasn't entirely what Town wanted.

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MATCH FACTS

Town (4-4-2): Margetson, Jenkins, Evans, Gray, Clarke, Irons, Thorrington, Mattis, Holland, Booth, Schofield
Subs not used: Digby, Heary, Moses, Macari, Hay

Chesterfield (5-3-2): Abbey, Richardson, Breckin, Howard, Reeves, Ebdon, Beckett, Booty, Ingledow, Payne, Edwards
Subs not used: Richmond, Williams, Pearce, Jones, Rushbury
Booked: Beckett

Attendance: 9,399 (1360 Away)

Referee: Scott Mathieson (Stockport)

See a summary of match events point by point on subsequent pages (let us know if you find this feature useful and we will continue it).

Note: Matchpoints will be in reverse time order.

FULL TIME

92 mins: Holland's injury time strike was wayward.

90 mins: Thorrington ran into a clutch of defenders who were determined to hang on for a draw.

89 mins: Holland's cross was cleared and Kenny Irons' return strike whizzed over the bar after good work by Schofield.

88 mins: Irons' cross was met by Danny Schofield but Ingledow put the Town youngster off and the header went wide.

88 mins: Chris Holland charged upfield with the ball after breaking up a Chesterfield attack and won a corner.

87 mins: Ingledow tried to find Beckett but the attack was cleared up by Clarke who conceded a corner.

85 mins: Dwayne Mattis struck the bar from the edge of the box after a great move from Chris Holland.

84 mins: Mattis' shot was blocked as Town laid seige to the Chesterfield goal.

83 mins: Chesterfield appeared to be tiring as Town grasped the opportunity to go for goal late in the game.

81 mins: Clarke won Thorrington's corner but, in the melee, Luke Beckett punted the ball out of the area.

79 mins: Abbey missed his punch but was saved by Rob Edwards who made the clearance as Town pushed forward on another attack.

77 mins: Chesterfield were becoming increasingly defensive as Town continued to press them.

75 mins: Ebdon's outrageous 50 yard effort on goal was well over a bemused Martyn Margetson's bar. The Welshman was virtually on his own goal line with little chance of being chipped.

74 mins: Thorrington's breakway was delayed and Chesterfield made the clearance.

73 mins: Holland closed down Beckett very quickly after he tried to make a right wing breakaway.

72 mins: Breckin was forced to put the ball behind for a corner under pressure from Irons and Thorrington.

69 mins: Luke Beckett's shot was palmed away by Margetson. Claims that Beckett was being tugged by a Town defender on the edge of the area fell on deaf ears after Beckett's theatrical dive.

68 mins: Gray's header was slightly mistimed and Clarke finished the clearance as the game became a little quiet.

64 mins: Evans went past two defenders but could not beat a third and fell over.

63 mins: Kevin Gray's header flew across the face of Abbey's goal.

62 mins: Thorrington's corner did not find Nathan Clarke and went out for another corner.

61 mins: Beckett stretched for a decent looking ball but it was beyond the reach of his boot and Margetson saved the loose ball.

59 mins: Claims for a free kick on the edge of the Chesterfield area were turned down after Schofield appeared to have been knocked down from behind.

57 mins: Evans appeared to handle the ball but the referee waved away claims for a free kick from the Spireites.

55 mins: Schofield's left footed effort from Irons' cross was forced over the bar.

53 mins: Howard overran the ball after a promising incursion into Town territory. Luke Beckett had been successfully hounded by Nathan Clarke.

48 mins: The Spireites closed down quickly after a Town attack.

47 mins: Chesterfield had started the second half very well and put Town under extreme pressure.

46 mins: A poor backpass by Clarke almost put Margetson in trouble but the Welshman came and cleared the threat.

HALF TIME

A hotly disputed Chesterfield penalty claim was the central discussion point at half time but both teams went in on level terms after an exciting half of football.

The Terriers had chances to open the scoring themselves through Danny Schofield and Andy Booth, both ably assisted by John Thorrington.

45 mins: Jenkins took a free kick towards Andy Booth but there was no time for further play.

44 mins: Schofield was flagged offside.

40 mins: Thorrington's lethal cross was flicked on by Booth and fired in by Danny Schofield but Nathan Abbey somehow managed to sit on the ball and save it!

38 mins: Booth was angry after Thorrington didn't push upfield and make himself available. The big striker opted to shoot and missed.

36 mins: Town cleared to Thorrington who beat a defender and squared for Schofield who, along with Mattis and Irons, put Thorrington in for a left footed rasper which flew over the bar.

34 mins: Andy Booth got his foot to a cross but Abbey was there to save the Town striker's stretching effort.

32 mins: Beckett was held off by Kevin Gray as Town defended stoutly.

30 mins: Andy Booth's header was parried away by Nathan Abbey following a great flick-on by Nathan Clarke.

29 mins: Clarke stopped Ingledow and pushed upfield on the counter-attack.

27 mins: Ingledow was tackled by Thorrington who fed the ball to Irons but his effort was off-target after good work from Schofield.

22 mins: Reeves was brought down in the penalty area by Kevin Gray but the referee did not award a penalty.

21 mins: Danny Schofield waited for a chance to come at the edge of the Chesterfield area but Edwards nicked the ball off him and sparked the counter-attack.

17 mins: Chris Holland broke free and had options but waited too long and Chesterfield themselves broke free with Jamie Ingledow's effort going behind for a corner when he could so easily have been felled for a penalty.

10 mins: Booth and Thorrington combined well and, eventually, Thorrington found Kenny Irons whose left footed shot was poor.

8 mins: Dwayne Mattis' effort brought a fumble from Abbey but he recovered in time to prevent Andy Booth from thumping in the rebound.

6 mins: Both sides enjoyed an open start to the match, with John Thorrington's corner matched by Marcus Ebdon's high and wide effort.

Town maintained an unchanged team, with Paul Macari replacing Simon Baldry on the bench.

Chesterfield lined up with three former Town players in their starting 11: Lee Richardson, Rob Edwards, and Steve Payne.