TIVIDALE must be getting sick of playing Coventry Sphinx at the moment.

After being knocked out of the FA Cup by them last week, Sphinx came back to haunt the Packwood Road side again - this time to send them crashing out of the FA Vase, again by a 2-1 margin.

At least manager Stuart Scriven was spared the spectacle of watching his side lose to Sphinx for a second occasion as he was away on holiday.

He said: “It was bad enough to lose to them in the FA Cup and I hoped it would be a different story the second time around. “But we didn’t create much and that’s a bitter disappointment as I thought we could go another round or two in the competition.”

Despite having a sizeable squad at his disposal, Scriven has added Stourport Swift’s left-sided player Tim Jackson to it.

Scriven said: “I spoke to Tim before I went away. I’ve always said that if the right player becomes available, I would act.”

However, the Tividale manager has been dealt a setback with news that the trio of Matt Jukes, Aaron Bains and Kyle Hill all require surgery.

Hill came off during the FA Cup defeat.

The Tivi boss added: “It appears the damage could have been done a couple of months ago, but Kyle didn’t realise the extent of it.

“He thought it was just a niggle to his knee and continued playing through the discomfort without telling anyone.”

Scriven has also hinted he will bring back striker Dan Evans who has recently been out on loan with Dudley Sports.