Cambridge United receive apology from Football Association for the award of Forest Green Rovers’ match-winning penalty

Head coach Mark Bonner has revealed that Cambridge United received an apology from the Football Association earlier this week for the awarding of a penalty that cost them a point during last weekend’s Sky Bet League One encounter at Forest Green Rovers.

It appeared that U’s substitute Saikou Janneh had rescued his side a 1-1 draw from their trip to Gloucestershire when he finished off a well-worked team move in the 89th minute, cancelling out Josh March’s first-half opener in the process.

However, three minutes into stoppage time Forest Green’s Myles Peart-Harris took a tumble inside United’s penalty area following a challenge from Paul Digby and much to the dismay of the visitors, referee James Oldham pointed to the spot.

Connor Wickham tucked the spot kick away to condemn United to a 2-1 defeat, with the game’s governing body having since been in touch to concede that the penalty should not have been given.

“We don’t deserve to lose that game by any stretch of the imagination,” said Bonner.

“We all knew at the time it wasn’t a penalty and it’s no help to us when we get the Email apologising from the FA and the referee saying that they made a mistake because it doesn’t do anything to help us in that moment.

“We get robbed of a point in the game which is frustrating but probably it sums up a little bit where we are – those things haven’t gone for us in certain situations.

“We just have to get on with it and move on and take the facts from the game that we started very well. If we score first in it we probably get ourselves more control but we concede a goal we’re frustrated with and the game drifted a little bit, which we’ve got to avoid that happening.

“But we finished the game strongly and I thought the goal was brilliantly worked and executed by the boys that came off the bench.

“It was probably the sort of goal that deserved something from it and at the late stage that it came we thought we secured ourselves a point which would have been good for us in the situation that we’re in.

“We just have to get on with it and move on to the next bit knowing that the games have been quite close and tight affairs. We know that’s the situation and we’ve got to make sure we try and make it the same this weekend (at home versus Plymouth Argyle) and give ourselves the chance of getting back in the points.”

Read more: Mannion enjoying role in Cambridge United spotlight