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Alex Flisher will miss Hythe Town’s next four games after a controversial red card – with the Cannons powerless to appeal.
Forward Flisher was sent off for violent conduct towards the end of their 2-0 win at Whyteleafe on Saturday, accused of pushing his opponent in the face.
Manager Steve Watt says the officials got it wrong but with no video evidence there’s nothing they can do.
He’ll serve a four-match suspension as it’s his second dismissal of the season.
Watt, whose side host in-form Cray Valley this Saturday, said: “It’s never a sending-off. We’ve got Whyteleafe players saying the same and even their fans over the far side, who were right in front of it, said it wasn’t.
“They said they’d write statements if we wanted to appeal but there’s no footage so we’re stuck with the ban.
“It’s frustrating but there’s nothing we can do.
“Flish has cleared the ball down the line, the guy’s on his blindside and as he’s turned to come back in they’ve run into each other. The linesman felt the need to say he’d seen Flish push him in the face.
“Flish hadn’t seen the player and his hands weren’t even up.
“It’s frustrating that we can’t appeal but it’s even more frustrating because it didn’t happen.”
Hythe showed another side to their game in the win at play-off contenders Whyteleafe, with Watt keen to make a point to some of their rivals.
They took the points with Frannie Collin’s first-half double and could have won by more.
Watt said: “We changed our style a bit on Saturday.
“I’ve read a few reports and word was getting round the league that we were only good at doing one thing.
“OK, we’ll prove we’re not just this direct team who’s hard to beat.
“We’ve got really good footballers and we caught them by surprise.
“I felt it was the perfect opportunity to be a little more open and play more through the thirds, especially on the 3G pitch, and it worked.
“The only disappointing thing was we didn’t win by five or six.
“I thought we played really well and the good thing was that, even though we gave the boys more freedom, we were still outstanding defensively.”
Watt must decide the best approach to take on a Cray Valley side who have won their last seven league games.
The Cannons are strong at Reachfields, winning five of their last six and drawing the other, so it should be quite a game.
Watt said: “We’ve not lost at home since the end of November, so it’s a good run, but runs mean nothing.
“They’re only good until they come to an end, which they inevitably do at some point, so we have to forget about that.”
