Hungerford Town's FA Cup campaign came to an end at The Honeycroft as Southern League Premier Uxbridge claimed a 3-1 victory, leaving the Crusaders to reflect on a challenging afternoon and a number of moments that ultimately proved costly.

The visitors began brightly, enjoying plenty of possession during the opening exchanges and looking comfortable on the ball. However, despite their encouraging start, clear-cut opportunities were hard to come by and it was Uxbridge who struck first after ten minutes. A short corner routine was only partially cleared, and Ciaran Martin reacted quickest to regain possession before curling an excellent effort beyond Ryan Clarke and into the far corner.

The goal lifted the hosts, who enjoyed their best spell of the match. Clarke was forced into an impressive save shortly afterwards, while Hungerford struggled to gain a foothold. The Crusaders' best opening of the half came when Ackeem Stewart and Brad Smith combined neatly to release Sheldon Wright, but his effort took a deflection and drifted behind for a corner.

Midway through the half, Uxbridge doubled their advantage. George Moore was afforded too much space on the edge of the area and punished the visitors with a clinical finish past Clarke.

Wright continued to provide a willing outlet on the right flank and tested the goalkeeper with Hungerford's first shot on target after the half-hour mark, but it was comfortably gathered.

The defining moment of the first half arrived ten minutes before the interval. Troy Perez-Duah tried his luck from distance with what appeared a routine stop for Clarke. Unfortunately for the Hungerford stopper, the ball slipped through his grasp, struck him and rolled agonisingly into the net to give Uxbridge a commanding 3-0 lead at the break.

To their credit, the Crusaders emerged for the second half determined to fight their way back into the contest. They felt they should have been awarded a penalty within minutes of the restart when Ben Stallard was challenged inside the box, but the referee waved away strong appeals.

Further controversy followed shortly afterwards. Perez-Duah was shown a red card for a foul on Stallard, yet Hungerford felt aggrieved that play had been halted as they looked set to break through on goal, denying them a promising attacking opportunity.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Uxbridge continued to threaten on the counter-attack. Clarke produced a pair of fine saves and was relieved to see another effort from Moore strike the post as the home side searched for a fourth goal.

Gradually, Hungerford's extra man began to tell. Nana Owusu delivered an inviting cross that Stewart met powerfully, only to see his header crash against the crossbar.

The visitors finally found a way through with 15 minutes remaining. Substitute George Alston made an excellent driving run before sliding the ball into the path of Stewart, who kept his composure to finish confidently and reduce the deficit.

Hungerford continued to push forward and felt they had another strong penalty claim when Amie Kamden-Fotsu went to ground under a robust challenge in the area, but once again the officials remained unmoved.

Fraser Bell came closest to setting up a tense finale when his effort narrowly cleared the crossbar in the closing stages, but Uxbridge held firm to secure their place in the next round.

While disappointment was the overriding emotion at full time, Hungerford's response after the break showed resilience and character. The Crusaders will now turn their full attention back to league action, determined to bounce back from their FA Cup exit.

Team : Clarke, Bell, Medford-Smith, Berry-Hargreaves, Bailey, Stallard (Franklin), Kamden-Fotsu (O Smith), B Smith (Alston), Wright (Clark), Owusu (Chard), Stewart
Subs unused : Thomas, Thatcher
Attendance: 502
Star Man : Sheldon Wright