The Glovers surrendered a two-goal lead before Johl Powell’s late equaliser rescued a 3-3 draw and a replay

Yeovil Town boss Billy Rowley admitted defensive mistakes cost his side dearly as the Glovers surrendered a two-goal lead before Johl Powell’s late equaliser rescued a 3-3 draw against Leatherhead in the FA Cup fourth qualifying round.

Archie Davies and Brett McGavin put Yeovil in control, but three goals in the closing stages saw Leatherhead take the lead before Powell struck with a minute of normal time remaining to force a replay at Huish Park.

Rowley admitted he was surprisingly calm despite his side coming close to an FA Cup upset.

“Maybe I shouldn’t be, because obviously you’re winning and you should be cruising and suddenly you’re not,” he said.

Rowley believed Yeovil had done enough to win based on the chances created, but felt the final 25 minutes proved costly.

“I think the only thing that let us down was probably the last 25 minutes,” he said.

The manager also questioned a penalty decision involving substitute Ste Walker, believing a second spot-kick could have put the game beyond Leatherhead.

“You might score that, 3-0, game over,” Rowley said.

Instead, Yeovil’s defensive errors allowed the hosts back into the tie, with Louis Paget heading home before Leatherhead captain Mark Waters scored twice to put his side ahead.

"It’s defensive mishaps. We were in complete control, a couple of balls in our box, we score an own goal.”

Despite the frustration, Rowley insisted his side could not expect to win every game comfortably after consecutive 6-0 victories against Boston United and Wealdstone.

“You can’t just go for every game, win 6-0. This is football,” he said.

Yeovil will have the chance to put things right in Tuesday night’s replay at Huish Park, where Rowley expects his side to be better prepared.

“At our place, I think we’ll be a lot more rehearsed in how we want to play,” he said.