CHELTENHAM 0, ALDERSHOT TOWN 0

RARELY can a goalless draw have been quite so exhilarating as Aldershot Town earned a valiant, if more than a tad fortunate, point against one of the pre-season promotion favourites on Tuesday night.

Barry Smith admitted that his side rode their luck several times – especially during a torrid first half in which Cheltenham could have blown the visitors away – but their spirit and resilience, not to mention much-improved defending, earned them that slice of good fortune.

“I thought it was a fantastic game of football,” enthused Smith. “Both teams tried to play attacking football and the fans backed us throughout the 90 minutes, which is brilliant for the players. We defended crosses a lot better tonight, we defended very well as a team, but we also had chances.”

Rhys Browne was again the catalyst for much of Aldershot’s dynamic play and Cheltenham foundered against his pace, movement and flashing footwork. But those moments were fleeting against a tide of Cheltenham attacks. Amari Morgan-Smith’s header was cleared off the line by Jake Gallagher and Danny Wright’s angled drive crashed off the inside of the post in the first seven minutes alone.

Morgan-Smith then had a header disallowed for offside and the Shots struggled for even a foothold in the game during the first quarter. Yet steadily they grew in stature and influence and Browne’s weaving run deserved better than a shot past the post.

After Browne’s penalty appeals were rightly denied, Wright again hit the post with a header which rolled tantalisingly along the line. Aldershot were relieved to escape into half-time.

Eventually, Cheltenham’s frustration, on the pitch and the terraces, became clear as even Gary Johnson’s double substitution failed to bring the opening goal they deserved.

The visitors’ defence held strong and the Shots were still positive enough to suggest that they fancied being on the other end of a smash-and-grab away win after Gateshead plundered the EBB Stadium at the weekend.

Browne skipped past three defenders but found goalkeeper Dillon Phillips blocking his path to goal, and into the final 10 minutes Smith’s own replacements, Tom Richards and Charlie Walker, nearly broke the deadlock with a slaloming run and shot which was tipped over the crossbar respectively.

There was still time for Jack Barthram to have a close-range finish ruled out for offside – as he pounced on the rebound of Kyle Storer’s shot off the post – and George McLennan to tease a cross through the goalmouth, with several home strikers only inches away from converting.

It had been a heart-in-mouth, nail-biting evening for Shots fans, but still Barry Smith was ready to give an extra glimpse of the steely ambition which underpins his early work at the club. Instead of briefly resting on the laurels of a satisfying night, he insisted: “We will get better. We’re not the finished article, but this is a good point and a great spirited performance.”

Cheltenham: Phillips; Barthram, Downes, Parslow, McLennan; Storer, Pell, Waters (Hall 57); Munns; Wright, Morgan-Smith (Cooke 57). Subs (not used): Kitscha, Hanks, Bowen. Booked: Pell Downes.

Aldershot: Smith; Alexander, Oliver, Beckles, Anderton; Lathrope, Gallagher (Richards 61), Stevenson, Browne (C Walker 74); D Walker, Barnes-Homer. Subs (not used): Saville, Thomas, Barker. Booked: Lathrope, Gallagher.

Referee: Brett Huxtable.

Attendance: 2,552