BOSS Gary Webb hailed FC United of Worcester's never-say-die spirit despite paying the price for a "really poor" first half on their big day on Sunday.

The Worcester & District Football League newcomers reached the Worcestershire Junior Cup final in their maiden campaign but lost 6-2 to Bromsgrove and District League outfit Broughsons.

Webb's men were four down at the interval but Worcester City's Joe Bates bagged a brace to give them a lifeline only for Broughsons to make sure late on.

"We were poor in the first half, really poor. I think we let the occasion get to us and all we can do now is look back on it as something to learn from," said Webb.

"I am not saying that even if we had played to our potential that we would have won, there were two decent teams out there but they were just better on the day.

"I want to thank the players, though. As disappointed as I was and they were, they just want to dust themselves down and takes the positives, which is great and the best way to look at it.

"Even at half-time they had not given up. We scored two goals and had a couple of opportunities at 4-2, the other team was beginning to shake so I could not take anything away from them in terms of grit and determination.

"The second half was brilliant, chasing a four-goal deficit was just a step too far."

FC United can overcome that disappointment by landing the Division One crown with four points from their final three matches, one of which is against fellow contenders FC Malvern.

"I think we will dust ourselves down and go again, after the game all of the talk was about winning the league," added Webb.

"The season has been a dream, it has gone far better than anticipated. We considered ourselves to be a mid-table side so to be in with a shout of winning the league and play in a county cup final is far beyond our expectations.

"Our focus now is on winning that league."