Kieshon Smith, the Hamilton Parish coach, has backed his side to pick themselves up from their FA Cup quarter-final defeat by Dandy Town at the weekend.

Playing on a waterlogged St John’s Field pitch where both sides had trouble passing the ball, it was the home team who coped better in the difficult conditions.

Smith pointed to the poor state of the pitch as a contributing factor in deciding the winner of the tie.

“The pitch wasn’t the best for the game, but both teams had to play on it,” Smith admitted.

“I would have wished the game would have been played on a better pitch. I feel the pitch wasn’t suitable for the magnitude of the game.

“The ball was getting stuck in the big puddles, the passing of either side wasn’t enjoyable to the fans, but they have the home-field advantage and knew where they could play the ball without getting it stuck in the water.

“With this being said, we had the chances and could have done better. Hats off to Dandy Town for advancing, and I congratulate my team for getting to where they did in this competition.”

Smith’s side now have to dust themselves off and focus on securing top-flight survival after gaining promotion from the First Division last season.

It has been an encouraging campaign so far for Parish who reached the Friendship Trophy final, losing to Somerset Trojans 4-0 on New Year’s Day, while claiming several prized Premier Division scalps.

“To be in the quarter-finals of the biggest trophy in domestic football, as well as reaching the Friendship Trophy final was great for our learning process,” said Smith, who formerly coached Devonshire Colts.

“We have taken four points from Town this year in the league, beaten North Village and Devonshire Cougars in cup competitions, so I’m happy for the club and the fans, and now the bigger picture is to stay up.

“There are five games left in the league and a lot of home matches, so if we can get positive results at home, we will be fine in the long run.

“The season is far from over and it’s a matter of us doing the job and not having to rely on other sides and their results.

“For a team to get promoted and make a final and be competitive in games against the big boys, it has been a surprise to everyone apart from us and we want to continue playing in the Premier Division.”