Chesterfield 3-3 Peterborough: Dion Donohue earns point for struggling hosts

Chesterfield's relegation fears deepened despite sharing a six-goal thriller with Peterborough at the Proact Stadium.

Sylvan Ebanks-Blake scored his first goal since August to give Chesterfield an early lead but Craig Mackail-Smith and Tom Nichols replied quickly to put Peterborough in front.

In a frenetic opening, Kristian Dennis and Mackail-Smith swapped goals to leave Posh leading 3-2 with only half-an-hour gone, but Chesterfield salvaged a 3-3 draw thanks to Dion Donohue's goal at the start of the second half.

Donohue's leveller helped Chesterfield avoid a 22nd League One defeat of the season, but they are now 10 points from safety after Oldham beat Oxford.

The hosts got off to a great start when Rai Simons set up Ebanks-Blake who found the bottom-left corner from 16 yards in the third minute.

But Peterborough hit back four minutes later when Bradden Inman crossed from the right and Mackail-Smith turned the ball in at the back post.

Chris Forrester rattled the Chesterfield crossbar from 25 yards two minutes later but Peterborough scored again in the 17th minute when Nichols was given too much time to turn in the box and find the bottom corner.

Peterborough were equally charitable in the 27th minute when a free-kick was allowed to reach Dennis on the edge of the six-yard box and although he scuffed his first attempt, he fired the second into the roof of the net.

It was the first time Chesterfield had scored twice in a game this year but they were behind three minutes later when Forrester played Mackail-Smith in to place a low shot inside Thorsten Stuckmann's right post.

More goals seemed inevitable and Chesterfield duly equalised in the 54th minute when Ebanks-Blake took advantage of static defending to set up Donohue who beat Luke McGee from 15 yards.

The chances kept coming and Mackail-Smith curled a shot against the underside of the bar five minutes from time before Posh substitute Junior Morais fired wide from four yards.