ALLOA manager Barry Ferguson says it was definitely two points dropped on Saturday and warned his team they better keep 11 players on the park this weekend.

Euan Henderson fired the Wasps in front before Craig Howie’s red card gave East Fife the bit of momentum they needed to go and steal a point.

Ferguson, talking exclusively to Advertiser Sport, said: “We’re in control of the game until, again, a sending off. We dominated the game in terms of possession. We just never had enough attempts on goal but when we get the goal and go ahead, I don’t know what he’s [Howie] thinking.

“He gets booked, I don’t know how many times I need to tell them and then obviously he makes a rash challenge and the ref’s got no other decision to give him a second yellow and send him off.

“We were in control, we dominated the ball, there’s no doubt about it, there was only one team that was in control of the game. I keep saying, that’s the fifth game this season where we’ve went down to 10 men and we’ve dropped either three points or two points.

"I’ve spoke to them a number of times about it so that’s the disappointing thing for me. When you’re in control of a game, you’re 1-0 up, any stage it’s going to be two because we’re dominating it and then Howie makes a rash decision.”

Asked what more he can do, Ferguson said: “I can only say so much, it’s up to them when they step across the line. Nowadays in modern day football if you get booked you can’t tackle. It’s as simple as that, you can’t even look at an opposition player now and you get booked.

“They’ve been told enough times, more than enough times, so he should know better and he was told that after the game, as you can imagine.”

Henderson’s goal was his seventh in the league and Ferguson hopes his loan period can be extended.

“That’s the reason why I was desperate to get him,” Ferguson said about his latest goal. “We’ve got him until the middle of January, hopefully I can keep him until the end of the season. He was actually quiet [on Saturday] but he took his goal well, that’s what he was brought here to do. He’s in fine form just now.”

Looking ahead to Clyde’s visit on Saturday, Ferguson issued a warning to his players: “We better keep 11 players on the park. We need to.

“You see the difference when we keep 11 players on the park: we beat teams. That’s the disappointing thing.

“East Fife are going to get a lift from [the red card], no doubt about it. And then they put us under pressure and we’ve just got to try and see the game out.

“You might look back and say it’s a good point but it’s definitely two points dropped.”