SWINDON Town head coach Luke Williams admitted it was “men against boys” last night as they fell prey to Ronnie Moore’s non-League sensations Eastleigh in the FA Cup.

Swindon, boasting one of the youngest squads in League One, were put to the sword 3-1 by their magnificent Vanarama National League visitors.

Eastleigh might sit two tiers below the Robins on the football pyramid, but Williams felt their experience won out on the night.

However, he insisted that was no excuse for the early exit.

“It was men against boys tonight and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way to our players, it’s more of a literal sense,” he said.

“They (Eastleigh) are a team with hundreds of games behind them - and it showed.

“We struggled to keep the intensity we showed at the weekend (in a 3-0 league win over Charlton) and we came off second best.

“We were prepared and the players knew what the opposition were going to bring to the table, but tonight their (Eastleigh’s) will was stronger and we have fallen victim of not maintaining standards.”

The shine of Tim Sherwood’s arrival as Swindon’s new director of football was quickly wiped away as goals by Jai Reason, Andy Drury and Mikael Mandron (penalty) swept Ronnie Moore’s Spitfires through.

Moore hailed the performance “unbelievable”, insisting: “Not only have we won, but we’ve played them off the park.

“It’s unbelievable when you consider they’re a League One club – and we could have won by more.

“Alright, you can say they’re struggling, but they’re not in the bottom four any more.

“To beat a League One team when you’re a National League team is fantastic for me – and fantastic for the team.

“To totally dominate like we’ve done is remarkable.”

Paying tribute to the 788 Eastleigh fans who made the trip up the A34 to cheer on the boys in blue, Moore said: “The support was just unreal. What was it, just short of 1,000 people here? It’s great for them to come up and see how well we’ve played."

Goalscorer and fans' favourite Reason agreed: “We’ve repaid the fantastic fans who came here tonight. I think they got their money’s worth!

“This is a wonderful club to be at. It’s going in the right direction.

“We’ve got good backing from the chairman (Stewart Donald) and some very good players in that dressing room.

“We need to convert this win into league form and start creeping up that table.”