The Ramblers suffered their second defeat of the season after a spirited second half comeback from FC Buxton saw the game turned on its head.
Stoke started the better of the two sides, in the baking hot sun, and after early pressure took the lead when Tim Doherty raced onto a long ball forward and chipped the ball over the onrushing keeper and into the net.
The visitors continued to press and Cope was twice left aggrieved that nobody had finished off his set pieces as two inswinging free kicks from the right wing swung inches winde of the far post, the second one whistling past the foreheads of unmarked Simon Duckmanton and Ben Dyer on the back post.
Buxton then came into the game and on the hour mark levelled the scores as a shot from the edge of the box beat the Ramblers keeper to his right. The hosts were then quickly in front as another attack down the Buxton left resulted in a second goal before a third goal finished the game off for the hosts as the rapid Nick Bainbridge easily outpaced Dan Buxton before sliding the ball under the keeper from the edge of the 6-yard box.
The referee had lost control of the game during the second period, seemingly losing interest in the encounter, and let numerous late tackles and tackles from behind go without even a free kick being awarded contributing towards the game getting more and more physical as the game moved towards its close.