Ryan Maxwell pointed the finger at referee Fabio Roque after an injury-time penalty denied Sittingbourne victory against Swale rivals Sheppey.

Brickies boss Maxwell said his team were robbed after Monday’s derby at Woodstock ended 2-2.

The Ites led through Dan Bradshaw but Sittingbourne were on course for victory following Ayman El-Moghaebel’s double.

There was a late twist, however, when Roque awarded a last-gasp penalty, converted by Richie Hamill.

“We were robbed,” said Maxwell. “It’s a very disappointing day for me and the club because we were robbed of three points.

“It’s not Sheppey’s fault - it was down to the referee, I’m afraid.

“I’m gutted because we deserved to win the game but the referee has given them a penalty when he’s waved away two, in fact three, of ours that were more obvious than the one he gave them.

“It’s a check, that was it, and their guy falls down and he gives the penalty to make it 2-2 in the last couple of minutes of added time.

“We’ve had a foul on Javaun Splatt which looked to me like he had to give the penalty, and a push on Jean-Baptiste Fischer, which he’s not given.

“What made that one worse was the linesman confirmed it should have been a penalty.”

Sittingbourne gifted Sheppey the opener after failing to clear their lines but, with Josh Osude causing havoc down the right, were looking good for back-to-back Isthmian South East victories following Saturday’s 3-0 win at Horndean.

Maxwell said: “Sheppey didn’t overly worry us but the referee has gifted them a penalty and we’ve given them the first goal, whereas we’ve scored two open-play goals and the balance of play was in our favour.

“Saying that, looking at the team, it is a little lacking in experience at times.

“Even though the referee robbed us of three points, we still didn’t need to concede the free-kick that led to the penalty.

“It’s those little things we need to tighten up on but the potential of the team is clearly there for all to see.

“We’re quite devastating going forward at times, and a handful for anybody.

“We just need to tighten up the nuts and bolts and once we do that I’ll be sitting a lot more comfortably knowing we can see out games even if things aren’t going our way.

“We should have had three points on Monday, regardless of the referee’s decisions.”

The derby attracted a good crowd of 651, highlighting the potential at Sittingbourne.

That pleased Maxwell, although his thoughts were with someone who wasn’t there in kitman Kieran Payne, as he awaits surgery to remove a brain tumour.

“The potential is part of the reason we’re behind the plan here,” said Maxwell.

“It was a great atmosphere, with the game played in a competitive spirit, and both sets of fans played their part.

“I was desperate to give our fans the win and especially Kieran, who’s going through a traumatic experience.

“He has his operation on Thursday, so it’s a big day for him.

“He’s a real diamond of a fella, with a heart of gold, and he’s shown tremendous toughness.

“It’s quite remarkable, the strength he’s shown.”

With both sides out of the FA Cup, Sittingbourne host Ashford in the Kent Senior Cup first round this Saturday (3pm).

The Brickies have injury concerns over Jake Goodman and Luke Woodward, who came off on Monday, while others are carrying knocks.

That’s likely to be reflected in Maxwell’s selection against Ashford.

He said: “We’ll freshen things up a little bit.

“We’re going to give the competition the respect it deserves but we have to field what we can because we don’t have access to our full squad, and that’s the truth.

“We’re not just throwing people in because we don’t care about the game.

“We want to win but we have to take into consideration who’s a risk and plan accordingly.”