Michael Appleton frustrated by referee as Shrewsbury surrender two-goal lead

Frustrated Michael Appleton felt referee Aaron Farmer cost his Shrewsbury side the points during their 3-3 draw with Gillingham.

George Lloyd and Luca Hoole scored early goals to put Shrewsbury in charge and after Sam Stubbs turned into his own net, Lloyd restored the two-goal cushion in first-half stoppage time.

But Robbie McKenzie slotted home a 66th-minute penalty to get the Gills back into the contest and the comeback was completed when substitute Elliott Nevitt headed home with four minutes to go.

“I am a little bit angry and annoyed with the ref for a couple of reasons,” said Shrews head coach Appleton.

“Firstly, it was a soft pen and gave them a chance to get back into the game.

“The guy (Josh Andrews) who won the penalty also sarcastically clapped the ref. He was on a yellow card, the referee saw it and did nothing about it. I found that a little bit disappointing.

“It was a soft penalty and set the tone for the last 20 minutes of the game. He was probably influenced by their staff at half-time, which was again a disappointment. I think it affected his decision-making.

“It is obviously frustrating after we had been ahead by two goals on two occasions.

“Overall we could easily have lost the game. A month or so ago we probably would have lost the game. Once they got it at 3-3, they had the momentum going and I thought we were reasonably resolute to see it out.

“I was hoping we would see it out. It was always going to be a difficult one.”

Gillingham manager Gareth Ainsworth felt his side had paid the price for a sloppy start.

“We weren’t good enough in the first half,” Ainsworth said. “We didn’t play. We were outstanding at times in the second half.

“We have to bring that together. We were going for it and wanted to win the game. Another five minutes and I think we would have won the game.

“The three goals we conceded is not like us, we are usually solid defensively. There were some bad mistakes and individual mistakes.

“Everyone does it, but they were at crucial times. The one just before half-time was a killer.

“In the second half I felt we could have had more. We had chances galore to hit the target and limited them to very little.

“The damage was done in the first half. We lost a couple of fights and looked a little nervous.

“You can’t score three away from home and not win the game. That’s criminal and that’s what we have done.

“I am really pleased with the comeback because it feels like a victory.”