The Blues had found themselves two goals behind at half-time, but a combination of determined performances and brave substitutions ensured they didn't leave Norfolk empty handed.

The Trinity side was forced into one change from their game on Boxing Day. Ross Greenwood was unavailable due to illness, so Ryan Mallon came into midfield, with Gareth Davies slotting into the back four.

Trinity found themselves behind after only nine minutes, when Ian Ross was harshly penalised for a foul.

The resulting free-kick was well delivered by home captain Adam Smith, and was met by a header from Luke Graham to give the hosts the lead.
Trinity were denied several penalty appeals throughout the game, and the most blatant was when Graham shoved Danny Anson in the back as he rose to meet Ross's quickly taken free-kick.

Mallon found space on two separate occasions down the right, and tested Scott Howie with two powerful volleys.
But as Trinity looked to apply pressure on the hosts, they were caught by a classic counter, andJoe Francis netted past Adam Sollitt to double their lead.

Many of the travelling faithful, which had descended on Kings Lynn in masses, wondered if there was a way back into the game, and the opening exchanges did little to encourage such hopes.

The ever-impressive Francis saw two headers go just over as he continued to cause problems for the shaky Blues rearguard.
The ineffective Mallon was withdrawn, and Colin Marrison entered the fray to make his first appearance in six weeks.

And it was Marrison whose goal gave The Blues a lifeline. Marrison pounced on a loose ball, which had been spilled by Howie, after Ross launched a hopeful cross into the penalty area.
Marrison reacted quickest to prod home from a yard to cut the lead in half.
The home side were unable to deal with the threat posed by Marrison, and he was brought down in the area, but again the referee failed to see what everyone else did.
Lewis McMahon headed just over from Marrison's cross, and then Steve Charles elected to go for broke, as he introduced Simon Bird to the action, and switched to a 4-3-3 formation.

Panic ensued amongst The Linnets, as the home fans also became impatient. Trinity were nearly caught again on the counter, as Francis missed his kick from eight yards out with goal at his mercy.
The equaliser came after McMahon forced home after an almighty scramble in the six-yard box. Ross's corner fell to McMahon who prodded home the equaliser.

Trinity then surged forward looking for a winner, but ran out of time.
After the game, manager Steve Charles reflected on some poor refereeing decisions and sloppy defending.

He said: "We've given away stupid goals again, to be fair though the referee hasn't helped today. The free-kick for the first goal was a harsh decision, and we saw a lot of inconsistency."

"We have troubled their keeper more than they troubled Adam Sollitt, and I think if the game had gone on 10 more minutes we would of won."
"I think we had two or three shouts for a penalty, and I think another referee would have given them."

Gainsborough Trinity: Adam Sollitt – 6 – A couple of good saves, but largely untested, Gareth Davies – 6, Martin Drury – 6, Bobby Wilson – 7, Nicky Ellis – 7 , Danny Anson – 8, Ryan Mallon – 6, Ian Ross – 8, Luke Beckett – 7, Lewis McMahon – 7, Chris Hall – 6 – Quietest performance of the season. Subs: Simon Bird – 7, Colin Marrison – 8, Matt Austin, Neal Spafford, James Cullingworth.