ASSISTANT manager Ashley Vincent admitted Paul Sullivan’s last-gasp equaliser felt like a “kick in the teeth” after Walsall Wood snatched a 1-1 draw to force their FA Cup tie with Worcester City into a replay.

Goalkeeper Matt Gwynne looked set to be City’s hero in the extra preliminary round on Saturday as he pulled off a series of fine saves to frustrate the home side.

But in the sixth minute of injury-time Sullivan nodded home from close range to deny Worcester victory at the ML Safety Stadium.

Vincent said his players were “gutted” as Dave Reynolds who gave City the lead with a first-half penalty missed a great chance to put the game “out of sight” moments before Sullivan’s leveller.

But he was keen to stress that Worcester still had another chance to progress as they face Wood at the Victoria Ground on Tuesday night (7.45pm).

“For about 30 seconds after the goal went in it was devastating,” Vincent said.

“It was a kick in the teeth but when you look at it we held our own on a pitch that probably did not suit us and arguably should have made it 2-0 before being caught by a sucker punch at the end.

“We know we can play better. We need to be strong and add that bit of clinical edge that we were probably missing.”

Vincent was also delighted with the performance of Gwynne who has been forced to bide his time as Tamworth loanee Dan Jezeph claimed the number one spot.

But with Jezeph cup-tied Gwynne seized his opportunity and Vincent reckoned the 25-year-old had strengthened his case to manager John Snape.

“It has been a tough start for him,” Vincent said.

“We made no secret that we needed another goalkeeper and (Jezeph) played in the first two games.

“But Gwynner got his mind right and I thought he was fantastic from the start.

“His positioning was good, his kicking was good and he made some saves that on another day could have been goals and we don’t even make it in the hat.

“That’s a testament to his mentality to stick with us and believe in what we are doing.

“He has given the gaffer a massive question to answer.

“Dan is a good goalkeeper, but I thought Gwynner was top drawer. He did everything and more that we could have asked him to do.”

Worcester came under heavy pressure in the second half but when asked whether he was frustrated by how much possession Wood had, Vincent added: “Absolutely not.

“We are a side with young players that want to get the ball down and pass it but that pitch does not allow for you to do that.

“We came with a game plan and it was perfect for 90 odd minutes until they snatched an equaliser which was gutting.

“But on a better pitch we may play slightly differently.

“We might have more possession and we feel like our quality will show.

“If it does and we have that same work ethic and competitiveness as we did on Saturday we will give them a very tough game on Tuesday night.”