'We came up just short': TNS boss Anthony Limbrick left ruing chances after Champions League exit
The New Saints should have killed off their Champions League tie with Linfield according to boss Anthony Limbrick - after they were beaten in extra time by the Northern Irish side.
The Saints, back in the Champions League qualifiers for the first time in three years, took a 1-0 lead to Belfast thanks to Ryan Brobbel's first leg strike.
And after soaking up a lot of early Linfield pressure on Tuesday evening - they had a handful of chances to kill off the tie.
Declan McManus was denied by the home keeper - and they were made to rue missed opportunities as Linfield skipper Jamie Mulgrew thumped home from 25 yards to level the tie in the fourth minute of added time.
And then early in extra time Chris McKee collected a ball over the top before squaring to Ethan Devine to score from close range as Linfield booked a meeting against Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt in the next round.
The Saints now go into the UEFA Conference League qualifiers - with Australian Limbrick left thinking what might have been.
"We wanted to get the first goal, as we knew they would come on strong," said the Saints boss.
"We had to sit deep in the first half and then in the second half we had the better chances, we had more shots and we should have scored the first goal.
"In the week we spoke about managing the game and needing to see the late period of the game out. We knew they'd push and it was a great strike.
"That gave them the impetus then, it was only one goal but we had a mountain to climb and we pushed but sometimes you come up short and we did.
"We were just a little short."
