A PENALTY strike from Rickie Lambert just before half-time proved to be a killer blow for faltering Stockport on Saturday.
The ex-County hit-man bagged his 25^th goal of the season from the spot, condemning the visitors to a dismal 2-0 defeat at the Memorial Stadium.
It's now just one win in their last eight games for the cash-strapped Hatters, who now look destined for a mid-table finish in League One following promotion via the play-offs last May at Wembley.
After Saturday's defeat, Stockport's assistant boss Peter Ward said: "It was a disappointing first goal to give away. All week we worked on that they were going to be dangerous at set-plays.
"It was a bad foul to give away in a poor area and we never recovered from that.
"My only complaint about the penalty is how James [Tunnicliffe] handled the ball. It bounced 20 yards in front of him and he still handles the ball.
"That was disappointing, we hadn't made a good start to the game, but at 1-0 we could have got re-arranged for the second-half and get back into the game.
"But that goal killed us."