Ebbsfleet boss Dennis Kutrieb feared it wasn’t going to be their day - even when they were awarded a last-gasp penalty against nine-man Welling on Saturday.

The Fleet boss didn’t expect striker Rakish Bingham to score from the spot, and his penalty was promptly saved by visiting keeper Kai McKenzie-Lyle.

It summed up a frustrating afternoon for Ebbsfleet, who dropped National League South points for only the second time this season as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Stonebridge Road.

“Honestly my feeling was for this game of football, we can’t score the penalty,” said Kutrieb.

“There was (so) much in the game and normally exactly this is the end that you miss a penalty in the last minute of the game. It was typical football I would say from this point of view.

“It was a great game, there were so many different turns in the game. If we had a good end and scored the penalty, I would be happy obviously, but I’m a bit disappointed.

“We’re still unbeaten but on paper they were the strongest side we’ve played so far this season. They had so much league experience so we knew what to expect. We take the point and move onto Tuesday.”

Fleet fans, players and management were increasingly frustrated by the time-wasting antics of the Wings in the second half.

It’s what you’d expect from a team with a player short, and Kutrieb felt his team were distracted too many times.

“That’s how football works,” conceded the Fleet boss. “The referee has to deal with, the linesman has to deal with it, it’s not my job, it’s not our players’ jobs. Our players try to get the ball and play.

“It’s one of the things where you need to get on with it and be focused and not get too distracted. I think in times we got a little bit too distracted instead of just playing our game and moving the ball quick.

“There were enough chances to score a goal and finish the game off, but maybe it was a bit too late. If we’d started earlier maybe we’d get more chances.

“For the fans it was a great game of football, the support was amazing and I’m looking forward to playing again on Tuesday because we want to do better.

“We tried hard and there was not one player who was lazy or didn’t want to win. You can be frustrated and that’s what I am and what the boys are.

“I can’t blame them when they try hard but their decision making needs to be better. I’m proud that they left everything on the pitch, you can’t ask for anything more.”

Despite the frustration at dropped points, the draw means Ebbsfleet remain the only unbeaten professional side in England, in all competitions.

“I like it because it puts a target on your back,” said Kutrieb. “I like that feeling as then you can play for something, defend something.

“Everyone who sees Welling on a daily basis, you can see this was by far their best game of the season. Just because this is the occasion they want to play, they turn up and the players do a little bit better.

“When teams come here, they want to hurt you, they want to win and they want to damage you. They want to take something away. I like it because you need to make sure you turn up and do the right things.

“We’re still unbeaten, a point is a point obviously we wanted to win but now we have time to regret as we have to go on Tuesday.”

Tuesday night sees Ebbsfleet entertain St Albans, who have impressed since changing their manager – including a 3-0 win at Welling last weekend.

“Since they changed their manager they’ve changed the way they play and their mentality,” explained Kutrieb.

“To be fair to Welling if you compare them to the St Albans game, this was a massive difference but we expected that as they have so much quality in the squad. If Welling turn up on the day, they can beat every single team.

“St Albans have confidence and we need to make sure we make the right decisions. We need to make sure we are prepared as they still have the top scorer from last season in Shaun Jeffers.”