FURTHER shoot-out heartbreak hit Newton Abbot Spurs on Tuesday night as they were beaten on penalties after a 3-3 draw with Exmouth Town in the Devon St Luke’s Challenge Cup.

In-form forward Owen Green starred with a brace, while teammate Gav Collins rounded off the home side’s scoring. Following a deficit-halving header from Dan Cullen, Jordan Harris’ two goals ensured the tie would go all the way, with Exmouth snatching a 4-3 win in the shootout.

‘I’ll call it a draw,’ Spurs boss Marc Revell said. ‘It is frustrating.

‘They’ve [Exmouth] got away with it; I think they will feel lucky and I think that they had that bigger-team savviness where they don’t play so well - we’ve outdone them and they’ve still come away with a win, and I think sometimes that’s what the big teams get away with.’

A fast start saw Spurs strike the frame of the goal within five minutes, setting the precedent for a game in which the lower-level hosts would go on to dominate in large parts.

The opening goal came on 20 minutes. With Exmouth piling forwards in numbers, the Newton rearguard did well to dig out possession deep on the flank and quickly distribute the ball towards their danger men. Collins carried the ball across halfway and played a neat ball over the top for Green to let fly a rocket of an effort across the ‘keeper.

It took four minutes for the Peninsula League side to double their advantage. A break down the left flank was hooked back for Green to slam home beyond goalkeeper Robbie Powell for his seventh goal in his last five appearances.

Exmouth halved the deficit just five minutes later when a free-kick from the left was swung into the box and turned home by the head of Cullen.

But with the floodgates now open, there was still time for another goal before the break. Now it was free-scoring Green’s turn to provide as he picked out Collins in the box, who squeezed his effort home despite a combination of Powell and his defender nearly clearing.

Newton continued to be the better side after the break, but the fitness levels began to show as the visitors gradually clawed their way back into proceedings as the game wore on.

Ten minutes from time, Harris got on the end of a long ball forward and finished with aplomb, bringing about his 100th goal in Town colours.

Controversy struck right at the death. With seconds left on the clock, Ben Steer broke into the box and went to ground, seemingly without a touch. But the man in the middle pointed to the spot and it was Harris who stepped up to the plate and converted with the last kick of regular time.

‘They can play below par, they can underperform and still get away with it because they’ve got that little bit of street-wiseness that gets them three goals. I think we were many goals better than them tonight but we ended the game level-pegging with them.

‘It’s just disappointing for the lads, really.’

Newton would go on to lose 4-3 in the shootout, with Green putting his spot-kick over the bar and Jaden Bond hitting the woodwork.

‘I had a little bit of a dig at myself again - I’m quite self-critical,’ Revell admitted. ‘I took off [James] Moxon and I took off Toby Pullman who are two main penalty takers who are really confident but that was because I though the game was pretty much sewn up.

‘Penalties are lotteries at the end of the day. Having lost one, we would either be determined to win the next one or it would be in our head a little bit with the worry of losing a second one and I think we’ve got that young, naive side and nerves might have got the better of them. Again, penalties are luck.

‘We had luck on the first one with Gav [Collins] getting to retake it, we had luck with Adam [Feaver] saving one and they had luck with us hitting the bar. It’s just bad luck; we won’t train penalties.’

Revell continued: ’I’ve just said to the lads to take nothing but heart from tonight, the same as the Brixham draw. The game tonight was pushing on to the point where I felt comfortable. I didn’t feel like they were going to score and I put a little bit of a defensive element on to help the tired legs but nothing but positives from tonight.’