Town picked up their second clean sheet of the season as they drew 0-0 at Leicester's Walkers Stadium. Both teams had chances in a game in which young Irish keeper Shane Supple made his senior debut as a substitute after Lewis Price had succumbed to a first half knee injury.

As expected, Jaime Peters and Kevin Horlock came into the starting line-up after impressing at QPR in midweek. Darren Currie, whose wife gave birth yesterday, dropped to the bench along with Owen Garvan.

Heavy rain prior to and throughout the game made the surface very tricky and Leicester's Joey Gudjonsson tried a skidding 30-yard effort within the first minute which Lewis Price pushed round the post.

The Blues went close in the 13th minute when Richard Naylor headed Kevin Horlock's freekick wide. Soon after, Sam Parkin neatly headed the ball down to Jim Magilton but the veteran's shot under pressure failed to trouble keeper Rab Douglas.

Price claimed Connolly's shot at the second attempt in the 17th minute, prior to two Leicester calls for penalties. Neither looked likely with Connolly slipping to the ground and then a cross from the right striking Matt Richards in the midriff.

On 22 there was confusion between Fabian Wilnis and Richard Naylor on the edge of the six-yard box, Lewis Price eventually being presented with a tricky kick with Mark De Vries in attention.

Leicester ought to have been down to ten men in the 23rd minute when Momo Sylla clearly stamped on a grounded Kevin Horlock after a challenge involving the pair. Referee Mick Jones called both players over but failed even to brandish a yellow card in Sylla's direction.

Richard Naylor got in to make an important interception ahead of Connolly in the 26th minute with the Irishman otherwise through on goal.

Just before the half hour, Lewis Price claimed bravely at the feet of man mountain striker Mark De Vries, receiving a kick to the leg as he did so which required several minutes' attention from physio Dave Williams who appeared to give particular attention to his left knee.

Price carried on for a couple of minutes with Fabian Wilnis taking goalkicks but, after De Vries hit a 20 yarder wide, was replaced by 18-year-old Irishman Shane Supple who was making his senior debut.

The youngster, man of the match in the second leg of last season's FA Youth Cup final, was into the action quickly saving from a De Vries header.

As the half entered its final five minutes, Leicester won a series of corners with Supple appearing to be impeded as he attempted to get to the ball on a number of occasions.

Town should have gone in 1-0 up at the break after Sam Parkin headed on a Supple long kick sending Nicky Forster through one-on-one. The former Reading man beat the keeper, who caught him as he went past, but took the ball wide and shot into the sidenet. Had the striker gone to ground, as many players would have done, Town would almost certainly have won a penalty.

The Blues had improved as the half had gone along. Early on, as in the first half at QPR, they had struggled to hold onto possession but as the half progressed they started to pass the ball around with greater fluency despite the difficult pitch.

Youngster Supple had looked confident in his first few minutes of senior football but would certainly have hoped for a debut in less trying conditions.

Town switched Darren Currie for Jaime Peters at half-time, the Canadian having found it hard to get into the game in the first half.

Supple made a comfortable save from Connolly early on, but it was the Blues who started the half the better of the two sides.

Forster sent in a dangerous cross which Parkin almost met, Currie, having found the former England U21 international with a superb outside of the right foot pass.

Alan Maybury shot wide for Leicester, prior to a whipped in Currie freekick forcing keeper Douglas to punch clear from under his bar.

Town were on top as the game reached the hour mark, although Supple was forced to save Williams' 25-yard effort and then produced the stop of the game at point blank from Connolly, sending the ball into the air and then punching clear. It was a fantastic save worthy of a seasoned international let alone a youngster on his debut.

Dean Bowditch replaced Nicky Forster in the 62nd minute, just ahead of Darren Currie's cross-shot dipping under the bar but failing to catch out Douglas.

Foxes sub Dion Dublin headed a Gudjonsson freekick wide and then Ian Westlake almost scored with a flick from a Currie cross from the right but Douglas saved sharply.

Another Leicester sub, former Norwich loanee Elvis Hammond, shot into the sidenetting from a good position on the right when he might have done better.

Kevin Horlock was incensed by a late Gudjonsson challenge in the 80th minute, referee Jones agreeing that it was a poor tackle and showing the Icelander a yellow card.

Supple saved from Hammond at his near post as Leicester put the pressure on Town. At the other end, Westlake sent in a low cross which Douglas grabbed ahead of Parkin.

Maybury picked up a yellow card for a wild, late and high challenge on Ian Westlake which caused the Town midfielder to perform an inadvertent somersault.

The last danger of the game saw Supple drop a cross under pressure, possibly illegal, from Hammond but the ball was scrambled wide.

A good away point from the Blues who were on the back foot for much of the game but also enjoyed their own periods of ascendancy. The clean sheet for the makeshift defence was the main positive from the match, with stand-in centre-half Fabian Wilnis outstanding alongside Richard Naylor.

Matt Richards continued his good early form, while Sito seems to be settling in well. The star of the show was undoubtedly young debutant Supple who looked calm and confident in awful conditions, made one stunning save and only really looked troubled by some of the more physical aerial challenges from De Vries and Dublin.

Lewis Price will have an x-ray to see how his knee injury is and the problem could force him out of the Wales game with Slovenia in which he was likely to make his international debut.

In midfield, Horlock contributed to Town's defensive solidity with excellent work in front of the backline, while Currie again provided dangerous balls into the box from set pieces. Jaime Peters found it hard to get into the game in the first half but made one or two runs down the right.

Up front, the strikers still look like they need time to gel with Parkin looking off the pace of the game throughout and Forster missing a one-on-one, as he did at QPR in the week.

Overall, the Blues had spells where they played the ball around well but at other times had difficulty holding on to possession. However, an away draw at Leicester and a second clean sheet of the season must be seen as a positive result.

Town: Price (Supple 35), Sito, Richards, Naylor, Wilnis, Magilton, Horlock, Westlake, Peters (Currie 46), Forster (Bowditch 62), Parkin. Unused: McDonald, Garvan.

Photo: Action Images

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