Lewis Rankin fired a stoppage-time winner as Rugby Town scraped to victory at high-flying Eynesbury Rovers in a game full of chances.

Rankin's 91st minute near post finish settled a close encounter in Cambridgeshire, after Town's Matt Hill had earlier saved a second half penalty to keep his side in the game.

Rugby boss Carl Adams had reverted to a three man central defence, with Keenah Rosser and Lee Thomas operating as wing-backs, but it was the home team that started the stronger unit on an impeccable playing surface.

However Eynesbury failed to convert this early superiority in clear cut opportunities, and the game's first real chance fell to Valley's Richard Blythe after good work by Danico Johnson, but his jinking run ended with a shot that was cleared off the line by Jack Uttridge.

Blythe was in the heart of the action again shortly after, when he set up fellow midfielder Richard Bunting, but his low left footed drive was gathered at the second attempt by Rovers keeper Aaron Butcher.

The hosts' best chance of the half then came on the counter, with Rhys Thorpe skying his finish after he was through on a one-on-one with Hill.

A Lewis Hayden strike was blocked in the lead-up to the interval, but by the restart Adams had rejigged things again with the introduction of Rankin in place of one of the back trio Luke Edwards.

Rankin was soon sidefooting one over the bar, before the home side were awarded a penalty when Hill took out the onrushing Thorpe after a long ball over the top of the Town defence by Robert Ducket.

Hill made amends for his rush of blood though with a comfortable save into body to Callum Milne's spot-kick. Johnson had a further shot blocked, whilst Butcher denied another Valley sub Romario Martin, after he had decided to shoot on the angle when perhaps better options were available to him.

Chances continued to come at both ends as the game became increasingly open, with Blythe having an effort saved and Hill coming to the rescue after a misplaced Thomas back-pass.

Eynesbury were starting to look the more likely to break the deadlock though, with Hill denying Ducket in a decent chance - before Kye Andrews curled one too high after he had escaped the attentions of Loyiso Recci.

However Rankin's late show came after more outstanding work by Johnson out wide gave him the opportunity to help the resulting low cross home following an initial diagonal pinpoint delivery from Hill.

Valley Line-up From: Hill; Edwards (Rankin), Recci, Perkins; Rosser, Thomas, Bunting (Martin), Hayden, Blythe; Evans (Tulloch), Johnson. Subs not used: Francis, Blake. Booked: Hayden.

Eynesbury line-up: Butcher, Shaw, Smith, Warwick, J.Ducket, Uttridge, Draper, Milne, Thorpe, R.Ducket, Williams. Subs: Parker, Andrews, Clifford, Hinson, Clarke..