UXBRIDGE boss Tony Choules is still struggling to come to terms with his side’s early FA Cup exit and admits even a run in the FA Trophy may not ease the pain.

Choules’ FA Cup adventure had started brightly and saw the Reds knock out a star-studded Wembley side that was full of former internationals.

But they were beaten by Berkhamstead last month to end their interest in the competition and are now plotting another route to Wembley in the Trophy.

That route continues with a second qualifying round clash against Canvey Island this weekend and Choules is hoping for a big performance.

“We’ve pulled out our best performances in the Trophy,” he said. “We’re looking forward to it and we know we’re massive underdogs and we’ve been inconsistent but we always seem to pull it out of the hat when we play in these big games.

“A Trophy run would go some way to making up for it but every pre-season, when you have a meeting with the players, what you talk about is the FA Cup. I felt that this year we had never had a better opportunity to reach that first round and I thought when we had been on telly against Wembley it would inspire the boys to go onto bigger things.

“The FA Cup exit still grates with me. We should’ve at least got to the first round proper. It is a massive gripe with me and I still haven’t quite got over from being knocked out of that yet.”

Uxbridge reached the second round of the Trophy in January 2011 when they were knocked out by Conference Premier giants Luton Town – a feat Choules would love to repeat.

He added: “When you play sides like Luton you enjoy the day out and you want more of it. It’s a big game for us.”