Unhappy Winterton Rangers boss Peter Daniel admitted his side had 'got out of jail' following Saturday's last-gasp FA Cup victory over North Shields.

Rangers secured a preliminary round date with Hebburn Town next weekend when midfielder Dave Ricardo scrambled the ball home in injury time following an uninspiring 90 minutes at West Street. And despite victory in Winterton's first competitive match of the season, Daniel said there were few positives to take out of the game. He even admitted to picking the wrong team for the match against a side from division two of the Northern League - the equivalent of division one of the Northern Counties East League which Winterton play in.

"We didn't perform at all," fumed the former Lincoln City manager. "We didn't win any second balls, we didn't shown any commitment or desire. Our shape and discipline was wanting and we played as 11 individuals.

"I have told the players that we were very, very lucky to win the game and I would not have fancied us going up north for a replay."

Rangers' lack of 'shape' was perhaps understandable following a 30-minute delay to proceedings in the first half. The game was barely eight minutes old when a 50-50 challenge between Rangers striker Danny Clarke and visiting defender Tony Browell saw the latter sustain a broken right leg.

It was only the unfortunate Browell's third match back in action after he suffered the same injury to his left leg last season.

Upset at the fate of their team-mate, who lay prostrate on the pitch while waiting for an ambulance to arrive, North Shields requested to have the match abandoned. But after consulting with his superiors at the Football Association via telephone, the referee allowed the game to continue.

Rangers enjoyed the bulk of possession after the delay, but all too often their good approach play was wasted in the final third.

Shields went closest to breaking the deadlock when Dave Borley, whose set-piece delivering troubled Rangers all afternoon, thundered a free-kick against the bar from fully 30 yards.

The second half followed a similar pattern. Clarke should have given the hosts the lead nine minutes after the break. Ben Morley cut 'keeper Dave Lanning out of the game with a neat lob leaving Clarke with just two defenders on the goal-line to beat. However, the summer signing wanted too much time and his shot was somehow scrambled off the line by the visitors.

Eager to avoid a mid-week replay in the North East, Rangers continued to press. However, they were continually frustrated by the fussiness of the man in black and their inability to produce a killer-ball to unlock a stubborn Shields defence.

And with spaces beginning to appear at the other end, the visitors almost nicked a winner themselves. Forward Andy Matthews almost got his name on the scoresheet three times in a five-minute spell. First, he fired over from an acute angle, before right-back Billy Green was forced to clear after debutant 'keeper Ben Simpson was lobbed from the edge of the box. Then, from the resulting corner, Matthews sliced the ball wide from 10 yards.

However, with a replay beckoning, Winterton finally found a winner. Ben Morley's corner was headed towards goal by defender Chris Keal before being forced over the line by a combination of Ricardo and substitute Andy Holt.

After a dressing room debate Ricardo emerged with the credit.

"We put then under quite a bit of pressure in the last 15 minutes and won a lot of corners," said the midfielder. "The corner came in, Chris Keel has won a big header and I managed to put it from about half a yard. But at the end of the day they all count."

WINTERTON: Simpson, Green, Robinson, Walmsley (Colley), Keel, Ricardo, Morley, Sharpless (Holt), Pindar (Whitehouse), Clarke, Sewell.

NORTH SHIELDS: Lanning, Lamb, Henderson, Browell (Green), Stokes, Borley, Robson, Miley, Gibbs, Matthews, Gray.