Rugby Town succumbed to a late defeat at Walsall Wood with Kevin Monteiro striking the winner deep into stoppage time.
Having defended resolutely for the majority of the game - including a number of fine saves by keeper Nykah Liburd-Hines, the hosts finally broke Town's resolve in the 93rd minute.
Dan Summerfield and Silvano Obeng returned to league action from suspension and injury respectively, and there was a debut for new signing Chris Clements in the midfield in place of the loan returnee Caine Elliott.
Drew Kear and Justice Campbell both dropped to Rugby's bench.
Wood started the game the stronger, with Joey Butlin striking a post for them in the opening minutes.
Liburd-Hines turned a 20 yard effort from Alex Bradley around his post and Gustavo Sanches had one ruled out for offside, as the home side continued to probe for the opening goal.
Valley then settled a little into the game, but their final ball was usually lacking, and Walsall went on to carve out a couple more chances - with Butlin's deflected effort sailing just over the bar and Liburd-Hines then denying Sanches with a good point-blank stop after Montiero had set his team-mate up.
The closest the visitors went in the opening period came when David Kolodynski's long range free-kick was taken high by Dale Eve.
The second half was a more open and eventful affair, with the hosts ruing a lack of a finishing touch on a number of occasions as the half progressed.
A snapshot on the turn from Butlin sailed over the target in one such example, before Rugby were also guilty of failing to capitalise on a good opportunity when Eve denied Obeng at close quarters after Kolodynski and Jordan Wilson had combined well to create the opening.
Kolodynski's strike to a Josh Thomas centre lacked power and consequently did not trouble Eve, whilst at the other end Sanches just failed to get on the end of a low cross, before Bradley shot straight at Liburd-Hines.
Arguably the best chance of the entire game then fell to the visitors, with Kolodynski and Wilson again the architects of the opening for an unmarked Obeng in the box.
However, the striker's attempt to skip around the home keeper was unsuccessful, and Eve was able to scoop the ball up.
Walsall continued to threaten, with Monteiro slipping at the far post as he looked poised to fire one in and the same player missed again from a similar position not long after.
In between these two Monteiro misses, Ryan Sahota was only just unable to bring down a searching Wilson pass through the middle of the Wood defence.
Josh Mansell dragged one wide from a narrow angle on the right, and as Walsall turned the screw on Valley, James Mace did well to clear Bradley's low cross from the goalmouth ahead of another fruitless scramble in the box for the hosts following a decent save from Liburd-Hines.
Bradley's creative back-heeled effort was also blocked out by Rugby bodies, before Sahota teed up Wilson for a shot from the edge of the area, but his deflected strike was pushed around the post by Eve.
The game had become an increasingly end-to-end affair, and another opportunity for Wilson saw him unable to get the ball out of his feet quickly enough and a Kolodynski strike to a Summerfield cross also lacked conviction.
Liburd-Hines then managed to get a hand on another flashed in Walsall cross, before he did well to keep out an angled strike from Bradley.
However, Town's hearts were squashed at the death when Monteiro timed his run to perfection to meet a Mansell cross and help the ball home for the late winner.
Valley
Line-up: Liburd-Hines; Summerfield, Thomas, Mace, Francis; Clements (Lee), Sahota, Dias (Kear), Kolodynski; Wilson, Obeng (Campbell). Subs not used: Lashley. Bookings: None.
