A combination of careless defending – gifting Institute two penalties from which they scored – and wasteful finishing at the other end meant United left Drumahoe with just a point from a game in which they should have been out of sight.

Ballymena made the best possible start with an early Darren Lockhart goal but two penalties in quick succession – each converted by David Ogilby – left United on the back foot before debutant Gary Muir's deflected free kick levelled the scores.

The draw at least maintained the six-point cushion between Ballymena and Stute, who currently occupy the dreaded play-off position in the Carling Premiership, but that was merely the tiniest crumb of comfort for frustrated United boss Roy Walker.

"I'm disappointed – it feels like a loss. From open play I didn't see where Institute were really looking like scoring but we proceeded to give two penalties away from terrible, rash defending.

"Albert Watson tackled when he had no need to tackle with the guy facing away from goal and Lee Colligan decides to lift his hand above his head.

"I have no qualms at all with the decisions - from where I was standing, they were stonewall penalties.

We didn't retain the ball well enough up front. When the ball went forward there was this flicking and tricking and the front men didn't hold it up well enough. We have to pass the ball better.

"We can do better than that and we should be doing better than that and then at the very end we could have had our pocket pinched because our people deserting their roles and responsibilities.

"We should have won the game and our wounds, once again, are self-inflicted."

In a game which was not so much 'must win' as 'must not lose', it had all looked so promising for United when Michael Smith's shot was blocked by Ogilby into the path of Lockhart for an easy seventh minute tap-in.

Just four minutes later, however, Albert Watson's challenge on Joe McCready near the edge of the penalty area was penalised and David Ogilby tucked the spot kick into the bottom left hand corner of recalled keeper Dwayne Nelson's goal.

And the same pair were again in the same situation on 20 minutes. Shaun Holmes struck the United crossbar with an volley from an almost impossible angle and as the ball dropped, Colligan stuck a hand above his head as tried to gain leverage to win a header, with the assistant alerting referee Raymond Hetherington to the offence.