Reading FC were in the lead for the majority of the game against Port Vale, through a Lewis Wing penalty, on Saturday at Vale Park but with the almost last kick of the game concded an equaliser through Everton loanee Martin Sherif.
When asked if he was frustrated by the result, Richardson said: "I feel for the players. I thought first half, you can see the pitch, the pitch is a leveller for any game, any level.
"I thought first half, probably as good as we've been away from home, with and without the ball. Deserved to be in the lead. Second half, they've got nothing to lose so they throw men forward, I thought we defended resolutely.
"Then there are the moments, the moments where you suffer. We're 30 seconds away from being clapped off the pitch, from a good away performance and the ball's in the back of your net from an aimless ball forward.
"We have a chance to go two-nil up, a couple of chances possibly to be better, to finish the game off. We don't, and you'll always leave yourself open.
"It's something we'll look at the good things that we've been doing. Now I think it's the fifth game in 15 days. We'll have a look at that, we'll reflect on that, we'll review that, the good things that we've been doing and also where we can get better."
When Richardson was asked 'what do you put the second-half demise down to' his first response was 'I don't think it was a demise' and said that it was a strong word.
He then said: " I think many things.
"It's something we always look for, we always look into. We want to be better, we want to control games from the eighth minute. It should be the same as the 98th minute and that's what we're trying to educate the players with, the group with. The lads on the outside of the starting XI, so to speak, need to maintain and lift the levels. It can be down to many things.
"Levels of fitness, levels of tactical awareness, teams changing. You've got to respect everybody. Port Vale have nothing to lose and they're a dangerous animal when they've got nothing to lose.
"I thought we dominated first half and they threw caution to the wind and went for it.
"So, like I said, I think we're 30 seconds away from getting clapped off with a really strong away performance."
He added: "Sometimes you just go through these moments.
"It's something that we'll review and reflect on and, you know, we'll get better at it, of course we will because we've got to be less emotionally attached to the game and I think that's when the emotion comes in, towards the latter stages. We picked a team up. What is emotional? Squad, what is emotional? As you can see from where we were and we're trying to manage the game a lot better with individuals. Trying to educate them a lot better in certain moments and that's what we're trying to do."
Paddy Lane who came on as a substitute for Kadan Young had a chance at the 90th minute to put the game to be bed - but saw his shot rifled completely over the cross bar.
When Richardson was asked if it would have killed off the game he said 'Absolutely'.
He added: "You've got to respect your opposition, regardless. As you can see, if you walk on the pitch, the pitch is a leveller. I think Man City can come here and it'll be a similar game.
"And then that goal, it's nothing tactical. It's nothing they didn't play through us. Same as Tuesday night.
"It's nothing tactical at all. It's a corner. It's an aimless ball forward.
"So it's not a demise. It's not tactical. It's not anything else other than just, you know, it is one of them moments."
When asked if the conceded goal should have been defender better and whether Reading should have been deeper to anticipate Gauci's cross, he said: "We get up the pitch well and then we don't get set.
"Fin Burns gets blocked and then the lad runs in behind. So, yeah, once we get up the pitch, which we do well, we squeeze the game really well.
"They didn't get up the pitch really well and you know, it makes them kind of out of shape but sometimes it makes them strong. So if we get up the pitch and then get set like we did for 95 minutes, we win the game."