A point apiece did little for either side in their respective battles; Wimbledon in their fight to avoid relegation and Exeter in their quest for a play-off place.
It leaves the Grecians in eighth and still a point adrift of the top seven in npower League Two with only two games remaining, while the Dons are only three points above bottom two, with the three teams below them all having a game in hand.
With so much at stake for either side, it could easily have been a tight, nervous affair. Far from it. This was a game that will live long in the memory. It was end-to-end stuff, with mistakes, plenty of chances and great goals.
It was played out by two committed teams giving their all, with backed by vocal supporters from either side that made up Wimbledon's biggest ever crowd – 4,749 – at their cramped Kingsmeadow headquarters. It was refereed brilliantly by the excellent Stephen Martin, who did not issue a single booking. It was lower-league football at its fabulous best.
Amid it all emerged a new hero for the Grecians. Jamie Reid has had to bide his time this season and has watched patiently as his fellow first-year professionals have been given their chance to shine.
On Saturday, Reid had his opportunity, and how he took it. The Torquay-born youngster scored both of Exeter's goals; the first a long-range effort that squirmed under the body of John Sullivan, the second an absolute beauty from an angle, which flew into the far corner from 18 yards.
He even came close to a debut hat-trick. Reid did score what would have been the winner, but his joy was short-lived by the assistant referee, who flagged for a controversial offside call against Jamie Cureton.
Exeter's veteran striker did not touch the ball, but he was deemed to be obstructing the view of Sullivan. It was a contentious decision, but when you are standing 12 yards from goal and in a central position, then you always run the risk of being flagged and there were few arguments from the Exeter camp come full-time.
To be fair, a winning goal for either side would have been harsh. This was a game neither side deserved to lose and it really was a terrific advert for League Two. The extra factor was that it was played out by two clubs owned by their own supporters, which merely added to a wonderful occasion.
The frantic nature of the game started from the first minute. Cureton forced Sullivan into a save with a curling attempt and a similar effort by Arron Davies moments later was equally dealt with by the former Yeovil Town loanee.
After both teams had gone close, Reid broke the deadlock with his fortuitous strike, but the build-up was superb. O'Flynn cushioned a high ball beautifully into the path of Cureton, who in turn sprayed it first time wide to Reid. He cut infield and on to his right foot, before firing goalwards from 22 yards. The ball bounced and bobbled, but ultimately ended up in the net.
The Grecians should have put the game to bed when, early in the second half, Lawson D'Ath's swerving long-range strike was met by Sullivan's unorthodox stop. However, the pivotal moment came when Reid released Davies, who rounded Sullivan, but fired at Pim Balkenstein, the one defender on the Wimbledon goal-line.
Moments later, the Dons levelled. Exeter only partially cleared the ball as far as Luke Moore, lurking on the edge of the penalty box, and his shot went through a sea of bodies before finding the corner.
Exeter goalkeeper Artur Krysiak was slow to get down to the ball and was having a mixed afternoon. One minute, he was making silly mistakes, the next he was making world-class saves, such as the one from Jack Midson, whose header was going in before the Pole's incredible intervention.
Three minutes after Moore's leveller, the Grecians were back in front. Davies cushioned the ball into the path of Reid on the right corner of the penalty box. He let the ball come across him before lashing a fine strike that flew across the face of Sullivan and into the far corner.
The relentless tempo continued and the Dons were soon level. Moore's second was an almost replica of his first, only better struck. It gave Krysiak no chance, but City were again sloppy with their defending.
Both teams had chances to win it – Reid's offside goal and a shot over the bar by the returning Alan Gow, who played the last ten minutes for Exeter, while Dale Bennett missed two glorious chances with free headers for the home side in a thrilling finale.
However, the point means Exeter must hope for favours from elsewhere after passing up the opportunity to go above Bradford City, who were pegged back late in the day and drew 2-2 at Chesterfield and who face a huge game at home to promotion-chasing Rotherham on Tuesday. The Bantams then face fourth-placed Burton Albion as Exeter take on Cheltenham on Saturday before the final-day showdowns see Cheltenham host Bradford and Exeter visit Chesterfield.
Northampton, four points clear of City and the only other team Exeter can now overtake, visit second-placed Port Vale on Saturday before bringing the curtain down on their campaign at home to a Barnet side fighting for their Football League lives.
There is plenty of work still to do and lots to hope for, but the Grecians' season is by no means over. One thing is for sure, though, and that is that Saturday is a must-win game.
