STOURPORT Swifts were able to recover from their Coventry United drubbing last Tuesday night with a 1-1 draw against high-flying Sporting Khalsa.

Boss Mark Phillips called for a reaction from his side after they suffered their heaviest defeat of the season last week and that is exactly what he got from his players on Saturday.

Swifts’ first half showing was a marked improvement on the previous performance which saw them 4-0 down by the break, with Matt Fulloway putting his team into the lead from a corner after 26 minutes.

The win looked like it could have been within their grasp but with 10 minutes left on the clock, Khalsa, who are pushing for Midland League promotion, were awarded a "harsh" penalty - according to Phillips.

The manager said: “I wanted a performance from the players because what they showed - especially in the first half - against Coventry United just wasn’t good enough.

“Khalsa are a very strong side and on the balance of play they might have shaded it, but I was impressed with the way my players dug in to try and get the win.

“Both teams had chances and obviously I would have liked for us to have held on to 1-0, but a draw was still a very reasonable result.”

The result leaves Swifts 18th in the Premier Division table, 15 points ahead of bottom-of-the-table Tividale and with a game in hand.

Phillips is expecting another tough game this weekend when his side host Highgate United on Saturday (3pm), before a rematch away at Khalsa on Tuesday night.