Workington Reds boss Derek Townsley rued his side’s inability to go for the jugular after they were held to a 1-1 draw against 10-man Sutton Coldfield Town on Saturday.

The West Cumbrians dominated their first league match of the new season at Borough Park but found it difficult to break down the newly-promoted West Midlands side.

Sutton Coldfield scored on 24 minutes through Justin Richards but Scott Allison equalised for Reds 10 minutes into the second half.

Sutton were reduced to 10 men on 78 minutes when midfielder Malcolm Melvin was shown a straight red card for a nasty challenge on Jake Simpson.

Townsley, who was taking charge of his first competitive match for Reds, said: “I think overall if I am being honest we were slightly disappointed we didn’t take three points from the game.

“We started the game on fire. In the first 25 minutes we came out of the traps and looked bang up for it. We conceded a soft goal and it took the wind out of our sails a bit.

“We have got to be that little bit cleverer at breaking teams down. It’s up to us to find a solution and get in behind them.

“We are hoping we are not going over old ground from last season – that we are not clinical enough.

“I felt that if we got a goal we would go on to win the game.

“We never went for the jugular. We huffed and puffed. When you smell blood you should go for the jugular.”

Reds fans, eager to watch their team in action once again, were forced to wait an extra 40 minutes to see the team kick-off the season.

A punctured tyre on Sutton Coldfield Town’s team bus meant they were late arriving to Workington and the match was delayed by 40 minutes.

Despite the delay, fans will have been encouraged by what they saw from Townsley’s men.

Reds perhaps lacked a cutting edge in the final third of the pitch but their ability on the ball and pressing bodes well for the rest of the season.

The games now come thick and fast for Reds.

They face a long journey tomorrow night to take on Skelmersdale United (7.45pm ko) for the second Evo-Stik Premier League game of the season.