Millwall were left frustrated by the officiating at the John Smith's Stadium on Saturday when they were rejected a late penalty appeal for handball on Harry Toffolo.

The Lions came into the match off the back of two straight 2-1 victories and would have been confident of getting something out of the game. The teams were level on points going into the match with a spot in the top six up for grabs but for one reason or another it did not work out for Millwall.

Gary Rowett claimed that his side should have had a spot kick late on when he spoke to NewsAtDen.

He said: "Disappointed in the last minute, I thought we should have had a clear penalty. I’ve watched it back a number of times.

"It’s great skill from Benik (Afobe), he back-heels it through the defender’s legs, Lenny (Ryan Leonard) has a shot and it’s Toffolo who turns his back and puts both his hands up and deflects the ball wide.

"I felt it was a clear penalty. But I’ll let people decide when they see it."

The Lions will dust themselves down and go again when they host Reading on Tuesday evening, down to 12th place but still within a win of breaking into the top six the belief will be present ahead of welcoming the Royals.

The Verdict

Taking a look into the shot data and it would appear that Millwall were well beaten despite the tightly fought encounter. Huddersfield Town outshot them 14-4 and convincing won the expected goals battle 1.62-0.26.

The support of Rowett has been fairly fickle from the stands at The Den this season, and therefore it is not a surprise for him to come out and claim an injustice to the media, which takes a lot of attention away from a below par performance.

15 games in and Millwall are well placed to continue to punch above their weight in and around the play-off places with the visit of Reading providing an excellent opportunity to get back to winning ways.