EASTLEIGH boss Richard Hill insisted he is "massively disappointed" after his side were knocked out of the FA Trophy by Aldershot Town.

The Spitfires were beaten on penalties at the end of an eventful tie which saw Eastleigh reduced to 10 men in the second half.

Jayden Harris had put the hosts in front at the Silverlake Stadium before Ludwig Francillette was sent off at the beginning of the second half.

Paul McCallum made it 2-0 but Aldershot then scored twice in the final 25 minutes, before ultimately winning on penalties.

Speaking to Eastleigh's official club media, Hill said: "I'm massively disappointed. I think it was important for this club that we did well in this competition.

"Although we played well in the first half, we played well without a cutting edge. Half an hour into the game, you wouldn’t be surprised if we were two or three up.

"We just needed to be a little bit sharper with our chances. It was not to be. It’s not helpful going down to 10 men.

"They were 2-0 down at that point, they just threw everything at us and they have players who can make a difference."

The 60 year old manager did not want to be drawn on the red card decision but he admitted it made his side's task much more difficult.

He continued: "I’ll get into trouble if I tell you my thoughts. The FA are watching us with what we say. If the referee thinks it is a sending-off, it’s a sending-off.

"We went to a 4-4-1 (formation). I didn’t want to take McCallum off the pitch. You don’t want to take your top goalscorer off the pitch.

"But by the same token, I had to try and block the outside of the pitch which we were not able to do. Somebody has to come off the pitch for that."

Eastleigh will travel to Aldershot Town next Saturday in the National League as they look to bounce back against the same opponents.