'How have we lost that game?': Eastleigh boss Ben Strevens gives his take on defeat to Chesterfield

The hosts started the better in the first-half and hit the post early on through Danny Hollands.

At the other end Scott Boden was denied by Spitfires goalkeeper Max Stryjek who saved with his legs a minute before half-time.

The Spireites started the second-half on the front foot and took the lead on 54 minutes when Tom Denton headed in Boden’s cross from the left.

Eastleigh then piled on the pressure but they could not find a way past the superb Shwan Jalal.

And Town punished the home side with 10 minutes to go when David Buchanan’s corner was missed by Liam Mandeville but Jonathan Smith blasted into the roof of the net to send the send travelling 144 Blues fans wild.

Strevens said: "It is a tough one to take.

"Sometimes when we lose a game I am like 'we did not play well today we deserved to lose that game' but I don't feel like that right now I just feel how have we lost that game?'

"I think today moments have gone against us, we created loads of chances, for the first half an hour we were excellent and on the front foot.

"We started the second-half poorly and gave that goal away.

"We got punished from switching off from a throw-in which we should have done better on. They ended up swinging a ball into our box and Denton - his strength his heading a football – there's not much else - but he can head a football very well and credit to him he finished it very well.

"It was a poor goal for us to give away and give ourselves a mountain to climb.

"But (after that) we were right on the front foot, created chances, blocks, things dropping in the box, keeper making saves and then we get punished late in the game with the second goal.

"Credit to Chesterfield they have come and got the points. On another day we would have won that football match but we haven't and they have got the three points and they go home happy.”