Eastleigh were like “rabbits in headlights” in the opening stages of their 3-1 FA Cup defeat to Boreham Wood, according to their manager Lee Bradbury.

The visitors trailed 2-0 after just 12 minutes following goals from George Broadbent and Lee Ndlovu in the all-National League clash in the first round of the competition.

Charlie Carter pulled one back for Eastleigh but Zak Brunt restored the two-goal cushion on the hour mark and Danny Whitehall’s late missed penalty ended any hopes of a comeback.

And Bradbury was left to rue the slow start from his side.

“They’ve been buzzing and looking forward to the game and all of a sudden we were like rabbits in headlights for the first 15 minutes of the game and we’re 2-0 down,” Bradbury told the BBC.

“I couldn’t believe my eyes to be honest.

“First 20 minutes was an awful watch. They started the game really well. We were miles off it. Decision making was poor. We looked sluggish.

“It wasn’t until they went 2-0 up that we actually started to get the ball down and play a little bit and play with some intent. But then we’ve got a massive mountain to climb.”

Boreham Wood will look to go on another long FA Cup run, having reached the fifth round last season before losing to Everton.