Maidenhead United assistant manager Ryan Peters felt his side were good value for a point after they ended a run of six consecutive defeats on their travels following a 0-0 draw at Hartlepool United on Saturday.

Although Pools had chances to win the game in the final 15 minutes and teenager Louis Stephenson produced one of the misses of the season when he fluffed his lines from close range in the 98th minute, the Magpies were generally resolute, well-organised and determined.

While the visitors were at times strikingly unadventurous, they went close to a winner of their own when Casey Pettit, the most advanced of their midfield three, crashed an effort against the crossbar. Other than that, frontmen Tristan Abrahams and Shawn McCoulsky were forced to feed off scraps, while substitute Reece Smith curled a free-kick straight into the arms of Pools goalkeeper Adam Smith. It might not have been thrilling, but it was a welcome point for a Maidenhead side who have struggled on the road and are fighting for their lives at the bottom of the National League table.

It was an old-fashioned performance masterminded by one of English football's longest-serving managers. Alan Devonshire, who won the FA Cup as a player with West Ham three years before Pools head coach Anthony Limbrick was born, is closing in one two decades in charge of the Berkshire side. While the 68-year-old still has a way to go before he can compete with former Pools manager Lennie Lawrence's experience, his longevity is a rare and impressive accomplishment in modern football. Limbrick was just 13 when Devonshire was first appointed as Maidenhead boss, while Pools have had 16 different permanent managers and eight caretakers since he returned for a second spell at York Road in 2015. Patrolling the touchline at the Prestige Group Stadium in his trademark flat cap on Saturday, Devonshire must have been delighted with his side's resolute defending as the Magpies kept themselves a point clear of the relegation zone.

The Magpies ended a run of six successive defeats on the road when they held Pools to a goalless draw on Saturday. Picture by Frank Reid.

placeholder image — The Magpies ended a run of six successive defeats on the road when they held Pools to a goalless draw on Saturday. Picture by Frank Reid.

While it was by no means a vintage performance nor much of a spectacle, the 60 Maidenhead fans who made the long trip won't have been too bothered. Although it was a game that Pools felt they needed to win, the Magpies ambitions are more modest and assistant boss Peters, who played under Devonshire before transitioning to a coaching role, felt his side deserved their hard-won point.

"I suppose if you were sat there watching it, it wasn't a very entertaining game," he told Maidenhead's official club website.

"But for us, we haven't been particularly good on the road. We showed resilience, we showed desire, we showed some togetherness. I think we deserved a point today.

"Look, we rode our luck at times - we had a few that were cleared off the line, of course. Casey (Pettit) hit the bar - he's missed the target, but I'm being harsh - but we need more and more performances like today. We've been very good at home, but our away performances haven't been so good. We had a lot of travelling fans, they were in good spirits and I thought we gave them a good performance."