STOKE boss Michal O’Neill felt his side should have had a penalty during their 1-0 victory against Rovers.

Jacob Brown got the decisive goal after just four minutes as Tony Mowbray’s men saw their top six hopes dented.

The Potters had a penalty appeal waved away by referee Geoff Eltringham in the final stages when the ball appeared to strike the arm of Darragh Lenihan, and O’Neill says it was “a strange decision.”

“I don't really know what you have to do to get a penalty if you don't get a penalty for that,” he told Stoke-on-Trent Live.

“The referee's explanation was that there was no distance between the ball and the player but the player's arm couldn't be in a more unnatural position so that's really irrelevant.”

O’Neill’s men have now won four of their last six matches as they aim to finish strongly and climb the Championship table.

“I think we deserved to win the game,” he added. “I thought we played really well in the first half, some really good football. Possibly could have done better in the final third, we got into good areas.

“It was a really good goal as well, and we were always just a pass from getting in again to make it 2-0.

“Then we had to defend in the second half. There were a lot of direct balls coming on top of us and the two lads up front for them are a real handful. You have to deal with that.

“But then we had really good chances on the counter-attack as well and we probably should have put that game to bed.

“We needed a couple of good saves from the goalkeeper, one terrific save. But if you look at it on the balance of chances, I think we had the better chances in the second half as well.”

The result leaves Rovers three points off the top six with three games still to play before the end of the season.

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