Stevenage boss Graham Westley believed his side's 91st minute equaliser in the 1-1 draw at Port Vale was almost inevitable after they pinned Vale in their own penalty area.
Charlie Griffin headed in Ronnie Henry's right-wing cross to reward a barrage of pressure from the impressive Conference team. And Westley's men would have been celebrating a giant-killing if Mark Roberts had connected with a gilt-edged opportunity two minutes later.
``We were pushing Vale further and further back and I don't think anyone was surprised when the goal went in,'' said Westley. ``We dominated long periods of the game and I was delighted with the performance of the team."
He added: ``We were unfortunate to be behind at half-time, but I told the players I didn't want hard luck stories because I was confident we could get back in it.
``The way they passed the ball and stayed patient was very pleasing and we had a couple of great chances to win it at the death.
``We could have done without the replay to be honest, but the FA Cup provides very important revenue, particularly after the collapse of the Setanta TV deal.
``The romance of the competition is also a big factor and everyone involved in football wants to be in the third round of the FA Cup.''
Stevenage would have been hard done-by to lose and Vale boss Micky Adams admits the visitors did have a good game.
``Stevenage did very, very well and I'll give them as much credit as I possibly can do,'' said Adams.
``But the important thing is we will be in the hat for the second round and we've got another chance.
``Stevenage had a game plan and it worked well for them. I don't want to take anything away from them, but it was disappointing to concede so late.
``We also conceded a late equaliser at Dagenham last week and it is something we have to address. We should be able to cope better than that.
``Stevenage will get the plaudits and rightly so, but I have to think about my team and I know we can improve on that performance.''
