Town's Capital One Cup first round tie at Crawley remains 0-0 at half-time with the Blues' best opportunity having fallen to Frank Nouble.
Town handed the expected debuts to 17-year-old Matt Clarke, keeper Bartosz Bialkowski and winger Alex Henshall, while Jack Marriott and Kevin Bru made their first Blues starts.
In a side featuring eight changes from the team which started against Fulham, there was also a rare start for transfer-listed Paul Taylor.
Clarke lined-up at left-back with Elliott Hewitt at right-back and skipper Luke Chambers and Christophe Berra at the heart of the defence.
In central midfield, Bru partnered Anthony Wordsworth with Henshall on the left and Taylor on the right. Marriott was up front with Nouble.
On five Taylor ran into trouble having done well to beat his man midway inside the Crawley half, then Lanre Oyebanjo shot well over from distance for the home side.
Izale McLeod shot just wide for the Red Devils, who lined-up with five men in midfield, then on 12 Nouble snatched at a Chambers long ball which the Crawley defence had failed to deal with and his shot looped well over.
Two minutes later, Bru picked up his first yellow card in English football for a foul on Conor Henderson, who was on trial with the Blues last summer. On 17 Henshall joined him for a trip on Bobson Bawling.
Berra headed wide from a Hewitt long throw on the right with the opening 20 minutes having been an even affair.
Town should have gone in front in the 21st minute when Wordsworth played a superb pass into the path of Nouble from midway inside the Crawley half towards the left after Clarke had brought the ball out of defence, but the Blues striker diverted the ball wide from 10 yards when he seemed certain to open his account for the season.
On 25 Gwion Edwards saw a shot deflect into the Town side-netting from a tight angle, then home skipper Joe Walsh just failed to get his head to Henderson’s freekick from the left after a foul by Wordsworth.
As the half moved towards its final five minutes with the Blues increasingly on top, Taylor skipped into the area on the right before hitting a shot which was blocked.
In injury time McLeod was somewhat harshly booked for handling Taylor’s freekick while in the wall. The Blues striker curled the resultant second freekick well wide.
The scores remained level at the break after an evenly balanced half. Both sides had had half-chances in the main with Town the game’s once significant opportunity, which Nouble spurned.
Debutant teenager Clarke had looked comfortable at left-back with Henshall a threat when running at the Crawley defence, albeit without creating a chance so far, while Bialkowski had, like his Red Devils counterpart Brian Jensen, had been largely untroubled.
Crawley: Jensen, Oyebanjo, Bradley, Leacock, Walsh (c), Edwards, Henderson, Smith, Bawling, Young, McLeod. Subs: Dickson, Banya, Essam, Rose, O’Connor, Richefond, Isaacs.
Town: Bialkowski, Hewitt, Chambers (c), Berra, Clarke, Bru, Wordsworth, Taylor, Henshall, Nouble, Marriott. Subs: Gerken, Wyatt, Lawrence, Hyam, Bishop, McQueen, Bajner. Referee: Andy Haines (Tyne and Wear).