JOINT-BOSS Wayne Oliver admitted Droitwich Spa had only themselves to blame for bowing out of the second qualifying round of the FA Vase at Shifnal Town.
Ben Novis had given the West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division hosts a half-time lead on Saturday before Nick Seabourne drew the Saltmen level.
Max Crisp’s free-kick then put Spa on the verge of the first round proper but Sean Pugh equalised in injury-time to send the tie to extra-time.
Novis then grabbed his second of the game to secure Shifnal’s progression into the next round before a mass brawl towards the end of the game saw Spa’s James Lemon, Crisp and Chris Glover given their marching orders.
“I have no qualms with the defeat,” said Oliver. “We only had ourselves to blame because we had more than enough chances at 2-1 to get what would have been a crucial third goal.
“The brawl at the end came about after a challenge on one of our players went unpunished and it just turned into a melee.
“The lads should not really get involved in things like that but they got the punishment they deserved for doing so.”
Spa will be hoping to bounce back to winning ways on Saturday when they entertain fellow Midland League Division Two side Montpellier in the Worcestershire FA Saturday Junior Cup.
With Lemon, Crisp and Glover suspended and Seabourne, Andrew Crowther and Mark Burrows out through injury, Oliver admits he is down to the bare bones this weekend.
However, he stressed the cup tie would give a chance for others to stake a claim for themselves.
“We are going to be the underdogs but it is a cup game so we will go out there and see what we can produce,” Oliver added.
