Pete Wild challenged Fleetwood to push for the Sky Bet League Two play-offs after dominating a 0-0 draw with second-placed AFC Wimbledon.
Wild’s side did everything but score against opponents now unbeaten in 11 and backed up by five successive clean sheets.
Ryan Graydon grazed the crossbar and hit the outside of a post in the first half and was denied by overworked Dons keeper Owen Goodman in the second.
Fleetwood’s latest point under boss Wild leaves them 13th but only eight points shy of the top seven.
“I know, if we hit our points tally, where we can get to,” said Wild. “That would put us in and around the top seven.
“Why would you not try and get to the top seven? Do I think it is realistic? It is achievable,” added Wild.
“We would need to win a lot of games. But we have two and a half months left of the season, why wouldn’t you have a go?”
Town won 16 corners to Wimbledon’s two and created 19 shots to five but could not find a priceless winner, even with 10 minutes of stoppage time.
“That’s the best (performance) since we came to the club,” said Wild, 11 games into his first job since leaving Barrow last year.
“I think Wimbledon are one of the best teams I have seen. They will go up automatically but we have gone toe to toe with them.
“We had a defensive structure and aggressive nature that we want and going forward I thought we were outstanding.
“If you are looking for what a Pete Wild team looks, like that was the answer – apart from the goal.”
Wimbledon, seven points behind leaders Walsall, managed only one shot on target – leaving boss Johnnie Jackson with mixed emotions.
“We came here to try and win the game,” said Jackson. “But I knew it would be tough.
“They have made it difficult of late for teams coming here. Looking how the game went, I am delighted with the point.
“We were the second-best team in the game but we defended brilliantly. If you can’t win these games, get something out of them and we did that.
“If we didn’t have that resolute way of defending about us, we would have lost that game because they put us under huge pressure.
“If you can play as poorly as we did and still not lose then we are doing something right as a team.”
