Luke Benbow smashed in his first goal for Boro in the 20th minute and put the away side ahead. Jimmy Ginnelly’s men seemed certain to hold on to the three points, until Ricky Johnson came off the bench and equalised for The Puritans.

The game began with little attacking prospect by either side, with Stuart Beavon coming the closest with a flicked header that sailed wide.

On 20 minutes, Nuneaton netted their first goal of the season. A floating corner from the right hand side was nodded towards goal by Dec Towers, whose header fell to the feet of Benbow. The former Stourbridge man smashed past Jack Harding with his second touch to put the Boro ahead.

Following taking the lead, Boro continued to press for more. Both full-backs exchanged in a switch of play that eventually found Devon Kelly-Evans, but the midfielder’s shot lacked enough power to catch Harding out.

With one goal next to his name, Benbow keen to add to his tally and nearly did. After the half-hour mark, his fireclay struck free-kick was pushed away by the busy keeper. The save from Harding had pushed the hosts forward and Anderson Cayola Villarroel managed to find space on the edge of the box after skilfully beating two players. However, his shot failed to beat the first man.

A huge contender for man of the match, Devon Kelly-Evans, beautifully picked out Benbow on the right after killing a Banbury attack. The forward’s back heel released Powell through and his shot sliced narrowly wide.

The second-half began with two free-kicks from which Boro could have doubled their lead. Benbow’s strike clipped the wall and bounced wide before Rhys Sharpe’s whipped cross smashed off the crossbar. The ball eventually fell to Powell, but he was instantly pressed.

Despite being dominated for large spells of the game, Banbury equalised. Gedeon Okito managed to beat Clifton and place the ball perfectly for Johnson to head past Cam Belford to grab a point for the home side.