Magnificent Mansfield Town hang on for crucial win over promotion rivals Stevenage

James Gale's second goal of the week proved the difference but injury-hit Stags were forced to defend for their lives against a Stevenage side sat in the top three promotion spots.

Mansfield ended the day still only outside the play-off places on goal difference but, with two more home games to come this week, still only a tantalising four points off the top three.

A first half littered with free kicks saw few chances after Stags had grabbed an 11th minute lead when Davis Keillor-Dunn's shot deflected in off Gale with the keeper wrong-footed.

Either side of the break the visitors sent close range headers straight at Christy Pym.

Stags tired as the second half wore on but were able to keep the back door shut, surviving a late 'kitchen sink' barrage from the visitors.

Stags made one change to the side that beat Newport in midweek as matchwinner James Gale replaced Jordan Bowery up front.

Though still short on match fitness, injured quartet Will Swan, Rhys Oates, Louis Reed and George Maris were named on the Mansfield bench.

The visitors, with former Stags boss Steve Evans again getting a hostile 'welcome back' from the home fans, had two ex-Stags up front in Jamie Reid and Danny Rose.

On their bench for the first time was 16-year-old Academy player Makise Evans.

From the kick-off Rose left something in on his challenge on Hewitt that left the Stags man floored, but the officials saw nothing wrong.

Johnson then clattered into Reid and was spoken to but no card produced.

Mansfield had started brightly and were ahead on 11 minutes.

Some neat passing worked the ball to Akins in the box. His shot was blocked but Keillor-Dunn had the second attempt from Akins' square pass and the ball took a deflection off Gale and Lo-Tutala was unable to stop the ball spinning over the line.

The goal was initially credited to Keillor-Dunn but then changed to Gale.

Scorer Gale was booked two minutes later for sliding in late on Gilbey and on 15 minutes Sweeney joined him for kicking the ball away after the visitors had conceded a free kick.

On the next raid Akins pulled a low pass back for Boateng, but he was wildly off target with his finish.

Gale needed treatment after going up with the keeper for a Quinn cross and taking a blow to the head. The youngster eventually had to be replaced by Oates.

With 10 minutes to go to the break Hewitt also needed lengthy treatment after a blow to the ribs but was able to continue.

On 39 minutes a long Wildon throw was helped on and from close range Sweeney nodded tamely over the home crossbar.

Then Pym came and punched decisively to clear a long Piergianni free kick into the box.

In the 45th minute Reid let fly from 18 yards and Pym did well to turn it round for the first of two corners.

Five minutes were added and in the third of those Wildin put in a good cross from the right and Roberts turned a header on goal from six yards but straight at Pym.

Then from a long Hewitt cross, Akins got a touch near goal but couldn't direct it on target as Mansfield went in with the slender advantage.

Stevenage carved out the first chance of the second half as a cross from the right found Piergianni at the far post but again the header was straight at Pym.

On 52 minutes Oates was booked for kicking the ball away, then we had another stoppage for treatment to a furious Piergianni after he took a knock to the head during pressure on the home goal.

Stags responded with pressure of their own and Akins saw a shot deflect wide for a corner, Oates then too high with a header from the flag kick.

Home fans were furious when the referee got in the way as Stags tried to halt a Stevenage break which thankfully came to nothing.

On 69 minutes Keillor-Dunn tried his luck from the left hand corner of the box, curling an effort narrowly over the far angle.

But the visitors were pushing Mansfield deeper and deeper, Law taking over from Quinn as Stags called on fresh legs.

Oates then raised excitement as he beat his man on the left and began to accelerate only to then blaze well over.

Keillor-Dunn, spotting the keeper off his line, also tried an ambitious dipper from the centre circle, but it didn't gave the legs to get over Lo-Tutala.

Stevenage went three up front for the last three scheduled minutes, but Stags broke on them from Boateng's pass on 88 minutes and Oates fired over from the left.

Stags rang more late changes as they headed for six nervous added minutes with the visitors throwing all they had at them and they hung on magnificently for a deserved ovation.

STAGS: Pym, C. Johnson, Kilgour, Perch, Hewitt, Wallace, Boateng, Quinn (Law 71), Gale (Oates 21, Harbottle 89), Akins, Keillor-Dunn ( Maris 89). SUBS NOT USED: Flinders, Reed, Swan.

STEVENAGE: Lo-Tutala, Wildin, ( Evans 87) Clark, Reeves, Piergianni, Sweeney, Roberts, Gilbey (Horgan 74), Bostwick (Forster-Caskey HT), Reid, Rose (Taylor 63). SUBS NOT USED: Przybek, Smith, Tomkinson.

REFEREE: James Linington.ATTENDANCE: 6,863 (384 away).