A BELOW-par performance saw Mansfield Town comfortably beaten, 3-0, by Stevenage.
It was always going to be a tough ask for the Stags once they went two goals down inside the first five minutes; Chris Whelpdale and Charlie Lee doing the damage for the hosts.
Rakish Bingham did hit the woodwork but there was a lack of attacking threat from the visitors, with Whelpdale crowning a superb individual performance with his second late on.
Boss Paul Cox was forced into two changes at the Lamex Stadium as his team went in search of a third successive win.
Chris Clements suffered a torn hamstring in the 3-2 victory over Carlisle United last week and faces at least a month on the sidelines, while Fergus Bell was also left off the bench due to a shoulder problem.
That meant a first start for Reggie Lambe, while Simon Heslop was brought in to the midfield to face his former club.
Lambe had shown good intent with an interception and attacking run almost straight from kick-off, but that was as good as it got for Mansfield early on.
Their defence was in disarray, conceding twice in the space of two minutes.
Whelpdale held off Ryan Tafazolli to latch on to Tom Pett's pass and burst forward.
And though on-loan Nottingham Forest keeper Dimitar Evtimov thwarted the first shot with his feet, Whelpdale followed up and fired past Tafazolli, who had stationed himself on the line.
Stags had barely had chance to catch their breath when Lee slotted home from close range following a cross from the right, giving them a mountain to climb.
Mansfield continued to look vulnerable at the back as the hosts maintained a frantic pace, looking to press at every opportunity, with Ritchie Sutton required to block another Whelpdale effort.
It took 17 minutes for the visitors to show signs of recovery.
Lambe tried his luck from range, but his shot was blocked, while Chris Day caught a back-pedalling Matt Rhead's header from Liam Marsden's ball in.
As the half hour mark approached, Mansfield began to come more into the game and went close to reducing the deficit.
Bingham unleashed a fierce strike from the right hand side of the area, which was pushed away by Day. And then a few minutes later, only the upright stood between the striker and a goal, with Day on hand to deny Rhead from the rebound.
The two front men combined again as half-time loomed, Bingham finding his strike partner with a floated ball to the back post, which Rhead headed over.
Stevenage though, continued to look dangerous whenever they got forward and were not afraid to shoot on sight.
Lee blasted over, and then drew a comfortable save from Evtimov on the stroke of the whistle after linking up with Ronnie Henry.
Cox rung the changes at the break, with Ollie Palmer and Jamie McGuire entering the fray in place of Lambe and Sutton; and the former quickly tried to make an impact.
Palmer's attempt from the left side of the penalty area however, lacked power and was easily dealt with by Day.
Skipper Adam Murray fired wide from the edge of the box shortly after.
And though it had been a more muted start from the home side, Lee and Whelpdale, in particular, continued to cause problems.
Evtimov was called into action just past the hour when Chris Beardsley shrugged off Martin Riley and squeezed away a close-range shot from a tight angle – a corner the end result.
Chances for Mansfield were few and far between in the final 20 minutes as Stevenage went close to wrapping up the three points.
Whelpdale drilled the ball inches wide from distance, then substitute Connor Calcutt almost bagged a goal immediately after coming on, heading over following Lee's flick on.
With less than ten minutes to go, Whelpdale finally got his second.
Marsden was beaten by Roarie Deacon down the right, the substitute picked out his team-mate, who picked his spot and made it 3-0.
As with the rest of the game, Mansfield had no answer.
STEVENAGE: Day, Henry, Ashton, Wells, Charles, Whelpdale, Bond, Parrett (Conlon 45), Pett (Deacon 65), Lee, Beardsley (Calcutt 75). Subs not used: Reading, Dembele, Zola, Johnson.
MANSFIELD: Evtimov, Sutton (McGuire 45), Riley, Tafazolli, Marsden, Murray, Heslop, Lambe (Palmer 45), Beevers, Rhead (Fisher 60), Bingham. Subs not used: Studer, Dempster, Taylor, Thomas.
ATTENDANCE: 2,820 (292 away).