Crawley'S FA Cup dreams came to a nightmare end at Broadfield Stadium.

Reds looked to have done enough to earn a money-spinning replay at the Recreation Ground on Tuesday night when Herne Bay referee Mick McCoy awarded Aldershot a hotly-disputed penalty with 13 minutes left.

McCoy pointed to the spot after ex-Watford marksman Wayne Andrews fell under the challenge of defender Andy Taylor. The tackle was made a few yards to the left edge of the Reds penalty box, but despite strong appeals Gary Abbott stepped up and shot the Hampshire club into the third qualifying round.

It was a sad climax to what had been a magnificent cup tie played in front of a Broadfield Stadium record crowd of 2,505.

Aldershot boss George Borg admitted afterwards: "It definitely was not a penalty. The tackle was clearly outside the area and you can only feel sorry for Crawley, because they didn't deserve to lose. However, in cup football you need a bit of luck and, fortunately for us, we got it."

Reds boss Billy Smith accepted Crawley were robbed by a poor decision, but cited amateurish defending for his side's cup exit.

After Danny Carroll had given Crawley a spectacular 42nd-minute lead with a right-foot rocket, they contrived to allow former striker Simon Ullathorne to haunt them with an equaliser after slap-dash defending.

Smith said: "It annoys me. Although we haven't been letting in loads of goals, we haven't kept a clean sheet for over a month. Sometimes we look a bit amateurish and if we're to mount a serious challenge for promotion to the Conference the boys have got to cut out these silly mistakes.

"We should've cleared the ball into the stands before their equaliser and what was Andy Taylor thinking about diving in like that. I've told the lad he's got to keep on his feet. If you go throwing yourself about in dangerous areas like that, you're asking for trouble.

"The referee has made a mistake, but that happens sometimes. You've got to accept it. But he wouldn't have been in a position to make a mistake had we defended better.

"We've got to maintain a level of consistency and look to average two goals a game. If we can do that we'll have a serious chance of being in the Conference next season."

But it was not only two defensive slips and a refereeing blunder that contributed to Reds' downfall. At half time, Crawley ought to have wrapped up the tie. Luke Anderson twice had shots cleared off the line and Mark Hynes missed two sitters.

Ex-marksman Simon Ullathorne received a mocking reception from the Broadfield Stadium faithful and it was almost scripted he would play a key part in the game.

Only last week, Smith had said Ullathorne wouldn't bother his defence, but three minutes after the restart he was making his ex-manager eat his words.

After having a couple of opportunities to clear a Mark Pye cross, the ball spilt to Ullathorne, who dispatched with aplomb from six yards.

Ullathorne was upset by the boos he received and Smith's comments.

He said: "I gave this club two years good service and always tried my best. At least I've made them eat humble pie by scoing today."

Reds now return to Dr Martens League premier division action. Their FA Cup exit could be a blessing in diguise.

Crawley chief executive John Duly said: "We could've had a run in the competition, which would've been nice for the fans and the coffers, but if it was a choice between that and getting promoted then it's the league that comes first.

"We've had a great education with this match. We managed to organise a match with a big crowd and steward it without any serious incidents. This club has shown it can deal with big crowds and let's hope we see more of them at the stadium this season."

CRAWLEY: Little, Brake, Woolf (Vines 50mins), Taylor, Pullan, Ugbah, Carroll (Wackett 90mins), Anderson, Wordsworth, Hynes (Powell 78mins), Sharman. SUBS NOT USED: McAree, Johnson.

ALDERSHOT: Pape, Ullathorne, Chewins, Adedeji, Coll, Blake, Bentley, Pye (Fielder 70mins), Abbott, Andrews (Crossley 85mins). SUBS NOT USED: Holdsgrove, Ruffles, Seale.

MEN-OF-THE-MATCH: Anderson (Crawley), Andrews (Aldershot).

REFEREE: Mick McCoy (Herne Bay)

ATTENDANCE: 2,504