NANTWICH Town's tough schedule caught up with them in a 3-1 defeat at Curzon Ashton.
Boosted by a midweek 1-0 victory at Mossley thanks to former Alex star Mark Gardiner's 50-yard free-kick, The Dabbers looked good for more points at their mid-table opposition.
Even falling behind, the Dabbers hit back as Mark Chandler grabbed a deserved leveller on the stroke of half-time.
But a sequence of four games in just 9 days took it's toll and Curzon capitalised on tired legs to secure three points.
"We just didn't have anything left in the tank for the second-half," said Dabbers boss Dave Cooke.
"But the pleasing thing is that Curzon are an average team in this league and we look like we can compete with them, next season.
The Dabbers look safe at 16th in the table and could secure their First Division future mathematically at Abbey Hay, this Saturday.
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