MARK Yeates admitted he and his Eastleigh teammates were “gutted” to fritter away a two-goal lead at home to Chester.

When the 32-year-old Irishman set up Gary McSheffrey to make it 2-0 early in the second half, it looked for all the world as if the Spitfires were on course to register a third win in four Vanarama National League matches.

But, for the second Saturday home game running, they allowed the opposition to claw back to 2-2 – and, unlike in the Gateshead match, there was no dramatic stoppage-time winner to get them out of jail.

“It feels like a defeat,” manager Richard Hill admitted after Chester’s James Akintunde and Ryan Astles had pegged the Spitfires back in the last half-hour.

“It’s still a point on the board, but it should have been three.

“We went 2-0 up and then just sat a bit too deep. We didn’t get hold of the football and pass it to each other and you end up aimlessly kicking it up the pitch.

"That forces you into changes, getting bodies behind the ball, and you tend to invite a bit of pressure.

“I just felt we needed a spell where we got hold of the football, but we didn’t. We got forced deeper and deeper.”

Buoyed by the previous week's 2-1 win at Macclesfield, Eastleigh had got off to a dream start when, with just two minutes gone, the hard-working James Constable set up top gun Ben Williamson to drill in his eighth goal of the season.

It took a goal-saving header from Andrew Boyce to deny Ross Hannah a couple of minutes later and, with better finishing from skipper Kingsley James, Chester would have equalised on the stroke of half-time following a cutely worked free-kick.

But with young Cavaghn Miley looking a real prospect in midfield, Eastleigh too had their first-half chances – Yeates having the pick of them saved by Conor Mitchell after cutting inside and letting fly from the left corner of the penalty area.

McSheffrey made it 2-0 with a deft header over Mitchell six minutes after the break but, rather than seeking to build on that lead, the Spitfires inexplicably retreated into their shells and invited trouble.

Akintunde halved the deficit on the hour from James’s by-line pull-back and, with less than two minutes of normal time remaining, the giant figure of Ryan Astles rose unchallenged to head home Lucas Dawson’s corner.

Deflated wideman Yeates emerged from the home dressing room and confessed: “Speaking for all the boys, we’re gutted.

“For 60 minutes we moved the ball well and I thought it was as good as we’ve played at home all season.

“But how many times have we got ourselves in front and haven’t got maximum points?”

Had Eastleigh held on for victory, they would have moved to within three points of the play-off spots.

Instead, the 16th-placed Spitfires have it all to do away at league leaders Dover Athletic this Saturday.

“We’ve got to go to Dover now and get something. We’ve put ourselves under a bit of pressure again,” said Yeates.

“It’s still early days, but it’s just the amount of times this has happened to us. It hurts.

“But we’ve got to come in on Monday bright and bubbly and be positive going forwards.”

Eastleigh: Ross Flitney, Gavin Hoyte, Callum Howe, Danny Hollands, Andrew Boyce, Ayo Obileye (Ben Strevens, 72), Gary McSheffrey (Sam Matthews, 79), Cavaghn Miley, James Constable, Ben Williamson (Craig McAllister, 76), Mark Yeates. Subs (not used) Chris Zebroski, Ollie Dennett.

Referee: Savvas Yianni.

Attendance: 1,868 (138 Chester)