Despite a late blitz on the County area, City had to settle for a goalless draw, keeping their seventeenth clean sheet in all competitions in the process.

City’s first draw since Boxing Day means that they miss the opportunity to leapfrog the visitors in the table, although they still have a game in hand against County, who rattled the crossbar towards the end of the first half through a Phil Jeavons free kick.

The hosts came close as Martin Devaney nearly pulled off a spectacular effort midway through the second half with his attempted lob from inside the centre circle being tipped wide by a back-peddling Ormson, and they couldn’t find a late winner after bombarding the County area.

Ethan Moore and Martin Devaney joined the starting line-up ahead of Aaron Williams and Santiago Aloi as City faced their second game in just three days.

The Blue and Whites started brightly as Ethan Moore’s cross from the right found Martin Devaney, who controlled with his instep and fired a shot that was blocked by Kieron Charnock after just two minutes.

But after a quarter of an hour County started to work their way into the game as the lively Adriano Moke jinked inside from the right, cutting the ball back to Nicky Platt who lashed wide from the edge of the area.

The home-side nearly took the lead after the twenty-minute mark as Ellis Deeney’s in-swinging corner from the right was glanced agonisingly wide off the head of the leaping Daniel Nti.

Both sides created little in the first thirty-minutes, but County threatened with the frightening pace of Moke, beating Tyler Weir with a step-over before flashing a deflected cross that arrowed just wide of Leigh Bedwell’s top corner, before Phil Jeavons teed Battersby who failed to sufficiently test the on-loan City stopper with his tame effort.

And it was County who dominated the latter stages of the half, as Jeavons’s curling free kick cannoned off the crossbar just five minutes before the break.

The lack of goalmouth action continued into the second half as the first clear-cut chance came fifteen minutes after the restart. Phil Jeavons launched a long ball forward to Moke, who ran clear before firing a shot that drifted wide of the post.

City enjoyed more second half possession, and threatened with the strength of Daniel Nti, who held up Ellis Deeney’s free-kick on the edge of the area before setting Ebby Nelson-Addy whose rising shot from outside the area drifted wide of the target.

Martin Devaney spotted Ian Ormson off his line before attempting a Wayne Rooney-like lob from inside the centre circle that the back-peddling goalkeeper was forced to tip behind.

And again Devaney had City fans off their seat in premature celebration just minutes later as Bedwell’s kick was flicked on by Brown to the winger, only for his rocket shot to be deflected just past the post.

City continued to dominate the latter stages as neat play from Devaney found the over-lapping George Williams, only for his low cross to be prodded over the bar by Aaron Brown via a deflection, before Tyler Weir struck a half-volley from distance deep into stoppage time that was easily saved by a diving Ormson.

“It’s another clean sheet, that statistic keeps getting better and better. It was probably the right result overall. They dominated possession in the first half, hit the crossbar and obviously had one other chance”, said City boss Carl Heeley.

“But, with that said, all of the good opportunities fell to us. Martin Devaney was very unlucky with an audacious shot from about forty yards. If that goes in it’s a contender for goal of the season”, he added.

City will face Histon, who currently sit in the relegation zone of the Skrill conference North, at Aggborough on Saturday (3pm kick off).