WELLINGTON’S football manager Clive Jones blamed himself for Saturday’s exit from the FA Vase at the hands of the 2014 winners Sholing.

Wellington led 1-0 at half time but then came under pressure in the second half and eventually lost 2-1 after conceding a last-gasp goal.

“I only took two substitutes and that was a mistake,” said a bitterly disappointed Jones afterwards. “It meant I had few options to change things in the second half. On reflection I should have taken five subs.

“The players gave me everything and they can be very proud of themselves. We were dead on our feet towards the end.

“We lost to the better side but I felt their first goal should not have been allowed to stand. The ref took four minutes to decide whether it was a goal.”

The tie looked to be heading into extra time when Bryon Mason headed in a free kick three minutes into injury time.

“I don’t think we would have hung on if it had gone into extra time,” added Jones who admitted: “There’s always something to learn in football.”

For the full story, see this week’s Wellington Weekly News.