LEE Hughes was Notts County's hero against Scunthorpe United in League One today.
The striker marked his first league start since mid-September with two goals at Glanford Park to rescue a point for the Magpies in a 2-2 draw.
Notts fell 1-0 behind early in the first half as Iron defender Christian Ribeiro scored on 13 minutes.
Lee Hughes headed Notts level just after the half-hour mark, but Keith Curle's side conceded a second goal in injury time at the end of the first half, Scunthorpe midfielder Damien Mozika scoring his first goal of the season.
Lee Hughes then hit a post with a header in the second half, Alan Sheehan had a goal disallowed and Iron captain Paul Reid was sent off before Lee Hughes netted a dramatic late equaliser.
He had replaced Yoann Arquin as the spearhead of the Magpies' attack against the Iron and Sheehan was also restored at left-back, joining Gary Liddle, Dean Leacock and Damion Stewart in defence, in front of goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski.
Captain Neal Bishop, Andre Boucaud and Jeff Hughes started in midfield and Jamal Campbell-Ryce and Alan Judge flanked Lee Hughes.
Two former Notts players were in the Scunthorpe team.
Goalkeeper Steve Mildenhall made his home debut for the Iron and Karl Hawley started in their attack.
The Magpies dominated possession in the opening stages and Jeff Hughes got a sight of goal on ten minutes, but dragged a shot wide of Mildenhall's left-hand post from 25 yards.
Scunthorpe threatened a minute later as striker Leon Clarke raced onto a pass from Hawley and drove a low shot at goal that Bialkowski held at the second attempt.
Having made a good save to deny the Iron, the Pole then sliced an attempted clearance two minutes later and Notts were punished.
Scunthorpe winger Mark Duffy seized onto the ball and passed to Ribeiro, who swept a low shot beyond Bialkowski and inside his right-hand post from inside the box.
It then took a great tackle by Liddle to stop Duffy on the edge of the penalty area on 17 minutes, after he had counter attacked Notts quickly from a corner.
The Magpies hit back on 22 minutes, Jeff Hughes whipping a cross into the box from the right wing for Lee Hughes, but he directed a header straight at Mildenhall from seven yards.
Campbell-Ryce was then forced off with an injury and was replaced by Arquin, but Notts still equalised on 34 minutes.
Judge was switched to the right wing after Campbell-Ryce's exit and it quickly paid off as he controlled a magnificent long diagonal pass from Boucaud and curled a cross into the box that Lee Hughes headed past Mildenhall from close range.
Having levelled, the Magpies then survived three big scares.
First, Clarke crashed a header against the bar on 41 minutes, Bialkowski then held a close-range attempt from Hawley and it took a last-ditch sliding tackle by Stewart to stop Clarke as he raced into the box soon after.
Notts did concede a second goal in injury time at the end of the first half, however, as Ribeiro swung a cross into the box from the right wing and Mozika swept the ball past Bialkowski.
Trailing for a second time, the Magpies went close to making it 2-2 on 56 minutes.
It was an ingenious moment of skill from Lee Hughes as he flicked a header at goal from Sheehan's free-kick into the box, but it hit Mildenhall's right-hand post.
Notts thought they had equalised on 62 minutes when Sheehan smashed a volley into the bottom-right corner of the net from the edge of the penalty area.
But their joy was shortlived because Lee Hughes was flagged offside and it was ruled out, though it was unclear if it was because he got a touch on Sheehan's shot or was stood in Mildenhall's line of sight.
Jeff Hughes then tested Mildenhall with a close-range header on 65 minutes.
Scunthorpe were reduced to ten men three minutes later when Reid was sent off following a challenge with Arquin, with Notts players gesturing the defender had elbowed the French striker.
Notts piled the pressure on the Iron's ten men and Lee Hughes netted his second goal to make it 2-2 on 82 minutes, pouncing on a flick-on from a corner and stroking the ball past Mildenhall from close range.
SCUNTHORPE: Mildenhall, Ribeiro, Reid, Canavan, Newey, Duffy, Ryan (Kennedy, 71), Mozika, Barcham, Hawley, Clarke (Ellington, 83). Subs: Slocombe, Grella, Gibbons, Howe, Keegan.
NOTTS: Bialkowski, Liddle, Leacock, D Stewart (Labadie, 74), Sheehan, Boucaud, Bishop, J Hughes (Zoko, 83), Campbell-Ryce (Arquin, 30), Judge, L Hughes. Subs: Mitchell, Bencherif, Mahon, Showunmi.
ATTENDANCE: 4,553.