24/03/2008 - Mansfield Town 1 Grimsby 2
New man in charge, new style of play - but still the same, sorry, predictable tale for Mansfield Town at Field Mill.
No doubt caretaker boss Paul Holland had hoped his promotion from assistant to top dog would herald a change in fortunes for the Stags in front of their own fans.
But, so far, he is finding it just as impossible to secure a point, let alone three, as his predecessor Billy Dearden.
Before Christmas, the 114x70 yard strip of grass so familiar to the players was their only reliable source of victories, so bad were things on their travels.
But now, it is their woeful form on that same turf which is increasingly likely to send them tumbling to the Blue Square Premier with every disappointing defeat.
This latest one against Grimsby was the 13th of the season and, incredibly, a tenth in 11 games, including the FA Cup exit to Premier League Middlesbrough.
Yet it has to be said, this particular setback - that saw the chance of back-to-back wins spurned for the umpteenth time - was not deserved.
Indeed, Grimsby's assistant manager Stuart Watkiss, former manager of the Stags, felt the Mariners had been fortunate to take all three points.
He knew Mansfield were desperately unlucky not to score during a sustained spell of pressure soon after Nathan Arnold had equalised Peter Till's first -half opener in the 49th minute.
He knew, too, that on another day, Danny Boshell's brilliant strike into the top corner from outside the box to win the game might have hit the corner flag.
But the fact both of those things went in the visitors' favour was decisive.
Even so, to blame the loss purely on bad luck would be to overlook why the team continue to fail week in, week out at home.
The first goal was a case in point as Mansfield failed to take the opportunity to clear their lines and were punished by Till's low, angled 32nd-minute strike that found the left-hand corner.
It is the type of soft goal, along with those from set pieces, that have plagued Mansfield's season. Rarely has the defence been sliced apart, but they often concede from a lack of concentration or an individual mistake.
And when you are struggling at the bottom of the table, they are errors that need to be eradicated for a season to be turned around.
Another failing of the Stags was their lack of an end-product, both before and after Arnold's sweet turn and left-footed strike to level things.
While Watkiss was right to say luck was at hand in keeping out Johnny Mullins' two efforts within seconds of each other as Boshell's head and the bar intervened, other Mansfield players should have done better.
Alex John-Baptiste was livid not to have netted with a close-range header after intelligent play from Matt Hamshaw.
And Arnold, as well-taken as his goal undoubtedly was, had two golden opportunities to double his tally only to fire wide and see another effort saved by Phil Barnes.
Like in so many other home games since that last success against Peterborough on Boxing Day, Mansfield have been unable to capitalise when on top at key points in the game.
By not scoring when they have been in the ascendancy, they have continually left themselves open to a sucker punch, which, almost exclusively, has been successful.
That said, there is no denying that the quality of football produced under Holland is much-improved.
It is rare to see the ball punted forward aimlessly - the onus now is keeping it on the floor and retaining possession.
The knock-on effect is that Mansfield's flair players are seeing more of the ball and the chances of a goal are more likely.
But only if the chances can be taken is an unbeaten run, which the club desperately needs to stay up, going to be fashioned.
At the end of the season, no-one will remember hard luck stories and what might have been.
The only thing that will be recalled is whether the Stags stay up or go down. Results, not performances, make and break seasons.
As the match petered out in the closing stages, despite Mansfield's best efforts to pin Grimsby into their own half, supporters were left to the feeling of despondency that has now become second nature to them.
Even the appearance of loan signings Neil Wainwright and Kevin Horlock, who both showed flashes of the talent that has seen them carve out impressive careers, was not enough to lift the mood.
What will be interesting is whether the new duo will be handed starts for today's important game at Bury.
Holland deemed it only fair to keep faith with the team which won 2-1 at Bradford against the Mariners.
But now it is not inconceivable both Wainwright and Horlock will start in Lancashire, simply because they have considerable experience of playing in pressure situations.
Equally fascinating will be to see the response from the Mansfield team to another kick in the teeth.
It is only the Stags' superb away form - six wins in their last seven matches - that means the club are not already all-but relegated.
And with their next two matches on the road - against the Shakers this afternoon and at Notts County on Saturday - only a continuation of that is realistically going to keep alive their survival hopes.
Mansfield can certainly not be written off as sure-fire relegation fodder just yet.
But with every home game that goes by without a win, the odds of a great escape dwindle that little bit more.