REDDITCH United came back from behind and surrendered a two-goal advantage to exit the Southern League Cup at the hands of Stratford Town.

Warren Brooks’s 25-yard rocket put the visitors in front but Reds midfielder Reece Hales trumped his counterpart with an opportunistic 45-yard lob to level.

Hales’s beautifully-weighted ball found David McDermott to spin and rifle home in first-half stoppage time and Trovarn Thompson made it 3-1 on the rebound 45 seconds after the restart.

But second-half substitutions seemed to upset Redditch’s rhythm and when Dior Angus blasted home just past the hour it was game on.

Ex-Red Edwin Ahenkorah, a persistent menace throughout, bullied United’s backline and Kieren Westwood levelled with a powerful angled finish from the left channel after a one-two with his team-mate 13 minutes from time.

And it came as no surprise when substitute Ben Ellicote scrambled home to complete the comeback during the last knockings.

Reds dominated the ball early on but lacked punch until Ahenkorah slid across the box for Brooks to smash past a helpless Brad Catlow for Stratford.

Hales levelled when his through ball for Thompson was cut out and launched clear by Stratford keeper James Cutts, only for the ex-Kidderminster man to send the ball sailing into the empty net from just inside the halfway line.

A slick passing move on the right ended with Hales lofting in for McDermott to turn his marker and quickly fire across Cutts to divide the teams at the interval.

United caught their opponents cold at the start of the second half with Thompson bundling home after Max Loveridge had rattled the crossbar from McDermott’s pass.

But Stratford remained patient, passed with purpose and grabbed their lifeline when appeals for offside fell on deaf ears and Brooks cut back for Angus to lash into the roof of Catlow’s net.

Although the momentum was with Stratford, Reds looked to have weathered the storm until Westwood’s moment of quality.

And from there, the visitors went for the throat with Ahenkorah’s cross just cut out with Angus lingering on the goal line.

Angus then left Frank Hazell treading treacle with Catlow collecting at his feet but it was a brief stay of execution.

The decisive goal arrived a minute from time when Ahenkorah bullied Hazell off the ball, peeled into the right channel and cut back for Ellicote get the slightest of touches despite a strong suspicion of handball.

Reds: Catlow, Young, Kelly, Loveridge, Hazell, Brown, Roberts, Hales, Thompson, (Cowley, 64) McDermott (Saunders, 59), Hewitt (Campbell, 70). Unused subs: Lloyd, English.