Lincoln City were denied the point they needed to secure their place in the play-offs for a second Spring.
Their patched up side was swept aside by Bristol Rovers' second-half onslaught, but the other results fell for them.
Unless they lose to Yeovil by six goals in their last match they will still be playing for promotion.
Paul Tait, still waiting to hear whether Rovers will keep him on, scored in each half. Lincoln drew level between his goals but were then sunk by one of their old strikers, Lee Thorpe.
With centre-backs Paul Morgan and Jamie McCombe plus top scorer Gary Fletcher all injured, Lincoln were prepared early on to crouch around a back line of five.
This had to change after they went behind after six minutes when Alan Marriott going down to his left just managed to parry a cross shot from Gary Twigg.
The ball fell though to the predatory feet of Tait, who had only to knock it back into an undefended goal.
Being behind is almost as novel for Lincoln as it is for Rovers to find themselves ahead.
Marcus Richardson set about putting the scoreline right. Close to the by-line he defied two challenges to get the cross in and it took a full stretched clearance by John Anderson to rescue Rovers.
No such rescue though was in sight when Lincoln grabbed the equaliser midway through the first half.
Richardson seemed to get the finishing touch to Ben Futcher's back-post header from a corner.
The best chances though were being worked by Rovers, watched by the TV gantry by new manager Ian Atkins, while caretaker Russell Osman ran things from the dug-out.
They regained the lead just over the hour when a Thorpe flick was hammered home by Tait.
Tait was to admit later: "With all the uncertainty about my own future under a new set-up I was more than a little nervous at the start.
"That first goal, which couldn't have been easier, settled me." Tait went on to set up Thorpe for the final goal with just over ten minutes left. It was Thorpe's first goal for Rovers and in fact his first strike since the Autumn.