Daryl McMahon was bewildered by the four red cards dished out at Stonebridge Road on Saturday.

Ebbsfleet and Hayes & Yeading both had two players sent off for their part in a mass brawl and McMahon questioned the decision-making of referee Anthony Da Costa.

But he wasn't happy with his players either after they piled in to scrap with the visitors.

McMahon said: "It was unbelievable. I don’t know how you can send four players off from a melee like that. I don’t know how he’s seen anything.

"I honestly can’t explain it. I didn’t see four red cards in it. I don’t know what anyone is supposed to have done.

"If any of our lads have done anything, they’ll be getting fined for getting sent off. Someone said there was a headbutt and if someone has (done that), they’ll be getting fined for it because I’m not having that."

Mr Da Costa isn't the first referee to have infuriated the Fleet manager recently. The men in charge of their games against Margate, Oxford and St Albans all irritated McMahon, who said after Saturday's game: "We seem to have them every week.

"It is frustrating but I expect us to be cleverer. I expect my players to be brighter.

"Don’t get involved. What are you doing? You’re not a hero by doing that.

"We’ve gone down to nine man, last week it was 10 men (when Matt Fish was dismissed for a bad tackle at Truro) and people have got to put an extra shift in.

"People are suspended now. It’s not brave and it’s not clever. I expect my players to be clever."

The match finished goalless, leaving Ebbsfleet 10 points clear at the top of National League South. Sutton, who climbed to second with a 4-1 win over Margate, have two games in hand over the leaders as do third-placd Maidstone.

McMahon said: "We didn’t do enough, definitely in the first half. I thought we were lacklustre and lethargic - but we had enough chances again, without actually playing well.

"Stuey had a great chance two minutes in, which is massive if he scores that.

"Az had a couple of headers, he had it in the box when the referee stopped it, which is a strange one again. Godds from the corner was a good chance, Rancey had a shot, Haynes got in a couple of times down the side - but not enough.

"We huffed and puffed and didn’t do enough.

"We took the game to them when it went 9 v 9 with our superior fitness levels.

"We had a couple of opportunities and I still did fancy us to hopefully nick a win and forget about this game but it wasn’t to be. We haven’t played well and that’s disappointing."

Ebbsfleet are at home to Havant & Waterlooville on Tuesday night.