Stockport County defied the odds to halt their recent slide into the Division Two relegation battle and bring to an end Cheltenham's honeymoon period under new boss Bobby Gould.
Stockport ended a run of eight games without a win despite having player-manager Carlton Palmer sent off after 38 minutes for two late tackles earning yellow cards.
Cheltenham, meanwhile, sank back to the bottom of the table as Gould, who was also dismissed from the touchline following an altercation with an assistant referee, saw his run of three games unbeaten come to an end.
Overall it was a disappointing game with chances at a premium and precious little goalmouth action in the first half. The biggest talking point was the dismissal of Palmer, who received bookings for late tackles on first Tony Naylor and then Grant McCann in the 36th and 38th minutes.
The best chance of the first half had earlier fallen to Stockport midfielder Martin Pemberton, who forced a good save from goalkeeper Steve Book after racing clear of the defence.
Cheltenham went close at the start of the second half when defender Jamie Victory met a McCann corner with a far post header that smacked the underside of the crossbar and bounced out.
The home side were failing to deliver enough quality into the penalty area although credit must go to Stockport for a fine second-half performance.
They worked tirelessly in defence and left two men in attack. One of those forward, Luke Beckett, was the most impressive attacker on the pitch and his strong running and link-up play meant that Cheltenham could not afford to plough forward against the ten-men.
County took the lead in the 75th minute when Jonathan Daly rose unmarked to head in a Rickie Lambert corner.
The second goal arrived in injury time when Daly found Beckett in a position that looked suspiciously offside. Beckett's cross was palmed away by Book but only as far as substitute Peter Wild, who drilled a shot into the net from the edge of the box.