Kyle Lightbourne is bitterly disappointed about missing out on promotion with Stoke City after defeat in the play-offs this week -- but he intends to stay with the Division Two club in the belief they will go up next season. The 31-year-old Bermudian striker has enjoyed a fine campaign, helping the Potters win the Auto Windscreens Shield final at Wembley and come within a whisker of promotion to the First Division. Although he has scored fewer goals than he would like, he has created many and has been a regular starter. Despite Stoke's 3-0 defeat at Gillingham on Wednesday, which condemned the Staffordshire team to a 5-3 aggregate defeat in the play-off semi-finals and another season in Division Two, Lightbourne is already looking forward to next season. "I have another year left on my contract and I'm looking forward to helping Stoke get automatic promotion next season,'' said Lightbourne. "I think we will get three or four players to strengthen the squad and we should have a good chance of going up.'' But he felt the two Stoke players who got themselves sent off in Wednesday night's defeat had cost the club a great chance to make it to Division One this year. Clive Clarke was dismissed in the 43rd minute for throwing the ball away, having already been booked, while Graham Kavanagh got his marching orders nine minutes later after a scuffle with a group of players. "We have no complaints about the sending offs -- the referee had no other choice,'' said Lightbourne. "They were for silly little things which probably cost us a place in the final. The lads who got sent off have done an excellent job for us this season, but we had no time to make up for their loss.'' Stoke had led 3-2 from the first leg and Gillingham took the lead early in the second half to level the tie on aggregate. Playing most of the second half with nine men, Stoke hung on desperately. Lightbourne, who made two clearances off his own goal line, said: "We defended the whole second half. With nine men, there was nothing else we could do. I thought we did ourselves proud to take it to extra-time.'' Lightbourne was substituted just before Gillingham went 2-0 up and his replacement almost produced a goal out of the blue for depleted City. "The young lad Paul Connor, who came on for me, had our best chance of the game,'' said Lightbourne. "It looked like it was going in all the way, but it hit the post. That could have taken it to penalties and then it would have been anybody's game.'' PHOTO Kyle Lightbourne: hoping to help Stoke City earn automatic promotion from the Second Division next season.