A POINT gained or two more dropped? Your reaction to this result will depend very much on whether you are a glass half-full or a glass half- empty person.

Leaving aside the fact that any glass at Basingstoke on Saturday would have been overflowing with rainwater inside a minute, it’s a difficult one.

With the home side struggling even more than County this season – one off the bottom with just a single win to their name – expectations were high that this trip could provide Dean Holdsworth with his first away league victory as manager.

A draw makes it four Blue Square South games without a win, and still only two all season.

Instead of moving away from the dreaded relegation zone the Exiles slipped a place to 18th and are now just a point above the bottom three.

And yet, despite all of that and despite the fact that it was a desperately poor game, it still felt like a good result with Holdsworth and team in buoyant mood after a very difficult 90 minutes.

Apart from the horrible conditions the main reason for that difficulty was young referee Antony Coggins, who did nothing to help County all afternoon.

Not only did he wrongly send off Kevin Cooper in the 37th minute for what he deemed to be denying a goal-scoring opportunity as the last man, but he also waved away two plausible County penalty appeals in the first five minutes.

To cap it all Coggins also gave Martyn Giles his marching orders in the last minute for retaliation, having failed to spot that the left-back’s shirt was being pulled by his opponent.

It was another poor display by the man in black and you can’t blame Holdsworth for praising his side’s spirit and belief in very trying circumstances.

Things started brightly for County at a gloomy Camrose Ground as Cooper burst into the Basingstoke box on the left after just two minutes and appeared to be caught by Joe Dolan but Coggins refused to point to the spot.

If that was a debatable decision, the second appeal three minutes later seemed more clear cut.

Rob Duffy, starting in place of flu victim Craig Hughes, picked up the ball wide on the left and saw his driven cross clearly strike the hand of Jason Bristow, but again Coggins was unmoved, much to Duffy’s evident disbelief.

After that flurry of activity County’s attacking moves started to break down, with Duffy and Craig Reid not quite on the same wavelength.

Basingstoke enjoyed a good spell, with Ross Montague and Mitchell Bryant both denied by Glyn Thompson, before Dolan put a free header over the top from seven yards on 25 minutes. That was a real let-off for the Exiles and 12 minutes later they were in real trouble when Cooper was dismissed.

The danger started when Paul Bignot desperately under-hit a back-pass to Thompson.

Tom Hateley nipped in to steal the ball and was racing through on goal when Cooper executed a perfect last-ditch tackle, taking the ball with little or no contact with the man.

But Coggins saw it differently, immediately blowing for a free kick and, after consulting his assistant, showing the red card – much to the home crowd’s delight.

The sense of injustice among the County players was clear but they comfortably held firm until half-time and the safety of the dressing-room.

Four minutes after the break Giles was booked for a rash sliding tackle on the greasy turf which flattened home substitute Adam Aimable.

The Exiles were understandably cautious but Basingstoke failed to make their one-man advantage pay and the visitors grew in confidence as the second period unfolded.

Captain Ashley Vickers and the returning Paul Cochlin were magnificent at the heart of defence, with Nathan Davies brilliantly shielding the pair and Craig Reid working tirelessly to provide an outlet up front.

Cochlin made a fine saving tackle to prevent a one-on-one and Montague headed straight into the arms of Thompson but Basingstoke hardly created a chance of note.

And, as Leon Osei was introduced in place of Duffy, there was a sense that County were the side more likely to get a winner.

Reid was inches away from beating the offside trap on numerous occasions and Vickers went close with a deft effort with the outside of his left boot.

Any hope of claiming three points was ended, however, with Giles’ second yellow as full-time approached, and after a lengthy delay while Bignot was treated for a head wound, everyone was happy to get out of the bitter cold with a point in the bag.

Basingstoke: Kitteridge, Maledon, Warner, Dolan (Aimable, 45), Britton, Watkins, Jombarti, Hankin (Tarpey), Montague, Bryant, Hateley.

Subs not used: Ruggles, Ogunbote, Waller.

County: Thompson, Bignot, Giles, Davies, Vickers, Cochlin, Rose (Jenkins, 90), Harris, Duffy (Osei, 70), Reid, Cooper.

Subs not used: Armitage, Colborne, James.

Referee: Antony Coggins.

Att: 418.

Argus star man: Paul Cochlin.