Rugby Town's stuttering league form continued at Butlin Road when they had to rely on a stoppage time strike from Josh Thomas to rescue a point.

Dylan Parker had given the hosts an early lead, but United gained a just two goal reward for their improved second half showing before Thomas's equaliser at the death.

Rugby fielded an unchanged starting line-up from their big Vase win at Coventry Copsewood three days earlier, as they looked to end a run of two successive UCL defeats.

The first chance of the game fell to the visitors though, with Chief Boateng heading wide of the target, but generally Valley controlled the early exchanges.

A clever back-heel by Danico Johnson created the opening goal for Parker after just nine minutes, with the Rugby man running onto the pass before dinking the ball past keeper Craig Foxall.

Josh Adams and Dylan Wilson did have opportunities to level the scores, although it was Town that looked the more likely to add to their tally, with Johnson curling his shot just off-target and Loyiso Recci unable to force home a James Hancocks' corner at the far post.

Parker also put one wide from twenty yards shortly before the interval.

The home side started the new period brightly enough, with a Caine Elliott cross from the left just too high for its target and a decent Thomas delivery from the other side then cut out by a Cogenhoe defender.

Successive Hancocks' set-pieces caused problems for the visitors, but for the first Recci again failed to capitalise on the opportunity and later a well-positioned Thomas could only divert the ball away from the goal.

Cogenhoe were soon seizing the initiative though, with Ben Newey pulling off a good save to keep out Will Bates's low strike, with the same player sending his rebound attempt wide.

Loyiso Recci then blocked a Jordan Orosz effort, before Newey made an even better stop when acrobatically finger-tipping a header over the bar.

Jack Reily also headed wide for the visitors, whilst at the other end Parker lashed one off target in a now rare chance for the hosts.

Ex-Town player Rico Alexander squared things up on 63 minutes after Newey failed to gather a corner from the right and then things got worse for the home side thirteen minutes later when Bates released Wilson for a rapid counter attack and he fired home from an angled position.

Foxall was alert to the danger when the ball cannoned off Hancocks and then the United keeper pushed a Danico Johnson effort round the post for a corner, as the hosts looked for an equaliser of their own.

The opportunity to do appeared to have slipped through the hands, until Thomas pounced on a deflected Max Johnson strike to force the ball home from a few yards out.

Valley Line-up: Newey; Omar Recci, Loyiso Recci, Francis; Josh Thomas, Hayward (Mpande), Hancocks, Elliott (Max Johnson); Parker, Kolodynski (Ahenkorah), Danico Johnson. Subs not used: Fitzharris, Marsden. Booked: Hancocks.

Cogenhoe line-up: Foxall, Orosz, Adams, Mortimer, Reily, Alexander, Bates, Mastropierro, Wilson, Boateng, Rhaman. Subs: Cichosz, Culley, Wakley.